Dr. Ziyad Alanazi’s “Heart Ride” (undertaken as part of our 2024 Sou’West Walkathon) raised almost $1,000 for the cause! We are very grateful to Dr. Alanazi and all who donated.
We knew it was a great story, and Saltwire agreed! Check out their article and learn more about this generous man and his story!
The Yarmouth Regional Hospital is, to put it mildly, a big place. With more than 120 inpatient beds and four operating suites, it’s easy to imagine the immense load of laundry generated every day. And of course, someone has to handle it! Enter the Laundry Services Department.
As it happens, this team not only has to handle all the laundry from our regional hospital, but Digby and Roseway Hospitals as well. Twice a week, laundry comes from both hospitals and is washed, dried, and folded along with the rest from Yarmouth. This means that approximately 24,000 pounds is processed by the Laundry Services Department every single week!
What does this laundry consist of? “We handle sheets, johnnies, OR and ED scrubs, and even a little bit of personal laundry for patients in long-term care when necessary. Rounds are done several times a day,” says Robbie LeBlanc, Assistant Manager of Facilities Support Services. It’s a lot of work for this small team (6 full-time, and a couple part-time), but it’s vitally important — yet another example of the tireless effort put in behind the scenes at Yarmouth Regional Hospital.
The folks on the Environmental Services team at the Yarmouth Regional Hospital are used to being called “housekeepers” – but there’s far more to what they do than simple cleaning work.
“Anything that needs cleaning top to bottom – offices, delivery rooms, operating rooms, patient areas, lobby, all the bathrooms, entrances – you name it, they take care of it all,” says Robbie LeBlanc, Assistant Manager of Facilities Support Services. “But really, we’re here to keep the hospital safe. Infection control is a big thing! We keep germs from spreading from room to room, from patient to patient, and from staff to staff. It’s not only about the patients. We’re keeping everyone who walks through our doors safe.”
Environmental Services team member Felicia Hirschfeld is ready to get to work! With six weeks’ experience on the job, she is one of the newer members of the team.
The training that goes with the position is extensive, and proper use of personal protective equipment is vital, given the staff’s proximity to illness and infectious disease. In fact, due to the level of care and attention given to the cleanliness and safety of our hospital, some Environmental Services workers can use up to 50 pairs of disposable gloves per day.
The job can be quite physically demanding as well, but there’s a large team to handle it all. “We have about 45 or 50 people who work here during the day and night. We’re at it 24 hours a day!” explains LeBlanc.
Here at the foundation, we’re sure you’ll agree that this is an invaluable team. So this Environmental Services Week, let’s give our thanks to the professionals who work so hard to keep us, our hospital, and our loved ones safe!
The work in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) is high-tech, fast-paced, and critical — and Kathy Ogden loves it. After graduating from the Yarmouth School of Nursing in 1978, Kathy was a nurse for 20 years when she took an assignment in the ICU and fell in love. She’s still in love with this position even after 25 years, so much so that she’s not ready to retire 10 years after she became eligible.
There are seven patient rooms and one treatment room in ICU, which allows for a variety of procedures, even the installation of temporary pacemakers. ICU is for critically ill patients, often those with heart or respiratory illnesses and those needing new acute dialysis requiring additional monitoring. These patients often require one-on-one care from a nurse, or perhaps one nurse can look after two or even three patients — but no more.
Kathy has been team leader for 10 years. While the nurses work 12-hour shifts — four on days, four on nights — the team leader works 7-3 Monday through Friday. Given her knowledge base and experience, she can provide support and advice to the other nurses. She also handles needed paperwork and fills in when a nurse needs assistance or a break.
In addition, up to 12 patients also can be monitored on 3-East or 3-South, and that’s because they have monitors that are connected to ICU. “We in ICU monitor them to determine if they need help, from asking the floor nurses to check on them to rushing to the bedside to deal with a critical development. We keep a close eye on them to determine if they need help and what kind,” Kathy says.
Years ago, many ICU patients would have been transferred to Halifax or Kentville for specialized care, but that happens much less often, Kathy says. “Now they can be treated right here at home,” she says. She attributes this to technological improvements and to the fact that ICU now has more internal medicine doctors, including a cardiologist and an intensivist, along with internal medicine fellows (doctors completing their training).
She credits the Yarmouth Hospital Foundation for funding many of the machines and devices that provide life-saving care — from the portable ultrasound that is used daily to ceiling lifts to special chairs that allow patients to sit up properly. “I get excited when we get some new equipment that the foundation has purchased,” Kathy admits. “The foundation has been very supportive when the need is there.”
The New Biological Safety Cabinet
When facing a cancer diagnosis, we can expect thorough treatment that mitigates as many risks as possible. But there’s often more that goes into our treatment than we realize!
For instance, patients receiving chemotherapy at the Yarmouth Regional Hospital have their chemotherapy drugs mixed onsite in the Pharmacy Department. To make sure that each dose is safe and sterile, they all need to be mixed in a biological safety cabinet. Not only does this keep the doses safe, it keeps the pharmacy staff safe as well as they mix these cytotoxic drugs. It’s just one example of the behind-the-scenes work that must take place for our healthcare system to run efficiently, smoothly, and safely.
When we were approached by Maggie Arenburg (Manager, Pharmacy South West Nova Scotia) and Pam Robichaud (Manager, WZ Cancer Care Program) and told of their need for a new biological safety cabinet (at a cost of $25,318), we knew we had to step in to help. According to Pam and Maggie, “Given the rising number of cancer diagnoses in recent years, the replacement of our old, antiquated equipment was essential and timely.”
Karen Gorst and Kristen Pulsifer at Work (L-R)
Put simply, the hospital’s patients and staff both deserve to be as safe as possible – and we were proud to do our part. In spring of 2024, the new cabinet (sometimes colloquially referred to as a “chemo hood”) were installed in the Yarmouth Pharmacy Department. Without this, provision of lifesaving chemotherapy in Yarmouth would be either impossible or significantly delayed. And it’s all made possible because of our inspiring donors who understand the need for supporting and enhancing healthcare in our regional hospital!
The new laparoscopic suites at Yarmouth Regional Hospital (YRH) are to the ones installed a dozen years ago as smart phones are to flip phones. Almost everything in the two operating rooms is brand new — lights, monitors, screens, beds, cameras and all of the other technology and specialized equipment our surgeons need to do their work, says Gina Leaman, nurse manager for Perioperative Services. (Perioperative is the term for the whole process from admitting to procedure to recovery.)
One of YRH’s two upgraded laparoscopic suites.
The new minimally invasive surgical (MIS) suites were made possible thanks to the Yarmouth Hospital Foundation, which covered the full cost of $1.5 million. “The old suites were a big improvement but the new suites are a thousand times better,” says team leader Deborah Janke. “The technology is so much better for patients, as well as the staff.” It allows the surgical staff easy visual access to x-rays, CT-scans and MRIs, and that improves accuracy and speed, Deborah says.
Since Yarmouth Regional is a teaching hospital, medical residents and student nurses often attend and the camera system and monitors can shift around to get the best views for the surgeons and nurses and to help them teach. About half of all surgeries are laparoscopic, but the equipment is also a major asset for open surgeries, making detailed visual information available at the push of a button.
Gina Leaman — Nurse Manager for Perioperative Services
Laparoscopy is a less invasive surgery than open surgery and requires less recovery time. A laparoscope, a thin lighted tube that has a video camera, is inserted via a tiny incision to examine and treat the organs of the abdomen. Hernias, gall bladders, appendixes and bowels are the four most common surgeries performed in Yarmouth. Often five or six procedures are performed in each of the suites daily, but some surgeries, like bowel surgery could take a whole day, Gina says.
Laparoscopic technology is also used to give physicians a clear and detailed picture of a patient’s condition, to allow the physician to determine how that condition should be treated. For example, many of the scopes for hip and knee problems are done here, which frees up OR time in Kentville where the more complex surgery is done.
Besides the surgeon, each operation requires an assistant, an anesthetist and three OR nurses. YRH has four general surgeons, two gynaecologists, one ENT (ear, nose and throat) specialist, one ophthalmologist, five visiting urologists two days a week and six visiting orthopaedic surgeons. They are assisted by 22 OR nurses, plus part-time and casual RNs.
WE CARE Radiothon Trivia is back!
How much do you know about Yarmouth Regional Hospital, and Yarmouth Hospital Foundation?
Yarmouth Hospital Foundation and our presenting partner Y95 – CJLS radio station are once again jointly hosting a trivia contest in the lead up to this year’s WE CARE Radiothon with prizes donated generously by Rayanne and Aldric Robicheau (thank you so much!).
Every (business) day from Wednesday February 14th to Wednesday, Feb 28th (not including the Feb 19th stat holiday) there will be two opportunities to win a gift card worth $25 for gas at the PetroCan station at the corner of Starrs Rd. and Haley Rd.
Each day, Y95 – CJLS will ask one trivia question and pick their daily winner. YHF will be posting a different trivia question each day at 8am on our Facebook page.
To win on Facebook, you must —
1) Answer the trivia question correctly!
2) Agree to the contest’s terms and conditions.
All contestants who answer correctly will be entered into a random draw to win, and the winner will be notified the same day! We will then message you to make arrangements to get you your prize.
By answering the trivia question on our Facebook page, your agreement to the following terms is implied.
Terms & Conditions
This Giving Tuesday, Yarmouth Hospital Foundation is thrilled to announce the incredible expansion of our Heart of the Hospital Monthly Giving program as Tusket Toyota have stepped up for health care in your community! Thanks to the generosity of Tusket Toyota, our new Matching Partner, your dollars just doubled. If you sign up today to donate monthly to Yarmouth Hospital Foundation, Tusket Toyota will match your monthly donations every month! This means that your money will go further — twice as far, in fact! — and it will have even more impact for Yarmouth Regional Hospital.
Tusket Toyota have supported Yarmouth Hospital Foundation for over eighteen years, and are featured in the Leaders category on our Wall of Honour. In fact, we consider them one of our loyal Corporate Partners in Healthcare — and now they’re your partner, too, doubling your monthly gift to your regional hospital, and multiplying your impact.
Monthly Giving donors are a special kind of donor, which is why we call them the Heart of the Hospital. Their reliable, regular contributions provide an invaluable resource of sustained funding for Yarmouth Hospital Foundation, allowing our regional hospital to invest money where it’s needed most and to plan for long-term projects that will change patients’ lives for generations to come. That’s the power of monthly giving.
Last year, our Monthly Giving Donors’ funds went towards the purchase of a PhysioGait Dynamic Unweighting System. The equipment is an essential piece for the Rehabilitation department as it allows patients to safely mobilize without having to fully bear their own weight. Natalie Bourque, manager of Yarmouth Regional Hospital Rehabilitation Services told us that “this equipment allows patients to work on their gait while having their weight supported. It decreases the risk of falls and creates a safe environment for both the patients and the staff member. Without this equipment, staff would be unable to safely mobilize patients who require a higher level of physical support.”
Giving Tuesday is the perfect time to join the Heart of the Hospital program as a monthly donor. It’s easy and convenient to set up a regular monthly contribution that works within your budget. You can give in any amount of your choosing and may adjust your amount or cancel your donation at any time. A little money every month goes a long way for local health care, right here at home.
Yarmouth Hospital Foundation Managing Director Mary Surette says, “Monthly giving is a simple and powerful way to have a significant and long-term impact on health care in the Tri-Counties: that’s why I’m part of the Heart of the Hospital Program, too. The impact of monthly giving is very real, and now it’s only going to be greater thanks to Tusket Toyota.”
Yarmouth Hospital Foundation is hosting an online auction as part of our fundraising drive towards a new service for Women’s Health this spring! We are raising money towards the purchase of a MyoSure® system, which will provide an alternative to major surgery or travel for many gynecological conditions: we’re very excited about this, because Yarmouth is the only regional hospital in the province that doesn’t have this equipment —YET!
Local artists and artisans have donated their paintings, pottery, sculptures, and stained glass towards this endeavor, and you can see all of these treasures at the Yarmouth Mall before you bid!
Help raise money for your regional hospital, and take home something beautiful and unique! Our 100% online auction can be found at www.32auctions.com/2023YHFArtAuction and runs from May 20th until June 20th!
Good luck and happy bidding!
Your contribution will help provide the safest and most up-to- date standard of care treatment for the women of the Tri-Counties, right here at your regional hospital.
THANK YOU: Once again we at YHF are in awe of our donors and are delighted to announce that the Christmas Appeal in support of Medical Device Reprocessing (and additional urology services) was a great success!
Yarmouth Regional Hospital will gain the capacity for low-temperature sterilization! This means that, for example, our urologists will be able to offer a 10-minute cystoscope procedure that patients in the Tri-Counties previously have had to travel to Kentville or Bridgewater to undergo. Imagine the relief for these patients!
Our regional hospital touches the lives of many individuals and families from the Tri-County region every single day of the year. Health care equipment is expensive, and the technology is continually updating. Your donations, like the ones that funded this V-Pro Low Temp Sterilizer for Medical Device Reprocessing, continue to provide our care teams with the essential tools they need to provide the best care possible in keeping our families and our community healthy.
After totaling up all the very generous donations received for our Spring Appeal (to raise money towards the purchase of two multiparameter patient monitors for your Emergency Department), we are delighted to announce that one of the monitors is fully funded! Thank you so much, Tri-Counties!
If you’ve not had the chance to donate yet, see our ‘Ways to Give’ page for details as to how!
