Health-care worker respite area opened at Calgary hospital, fundraising started for 3 more
Health-care workers at Foothills Medical Centre can now step away from the chaos of work to find a moment of respite, thanks to a dedicated space opened earlier this summer.
And fundraising is ongoing to build similar areas at three other medical facilities over the next year.
The first respite area opened at Foothills Medical Center in September, designed to get workers a breath of fresh air during hectic shifts, where they can find physical and emotional rejuvenation.
"Hospitals are a busy environment with lots of beeps and buzzing," said Mike Meldrum, president and CEO of the Calgary Health Foundation.
"(The respite projects are) done in conjunction with the staff and with the planning team there at the sites that understand the facilities, where people are going to congregate and with that objective of trying to provide a functional meaningful space for them to recharge."
The space at Foothills cost upward of $100,000. Meldrum says hospital budgets are focused on patient care, not so much on staff needs and while they have some indoor spaces for a break, there are restrictions on how many staff can be there at any given time due to COVID-19 protocols.
The Calgary Health Foundation has focused on small benefits for health-care workers during the pandemic, offering things like meals along with coffee and gift cards.
"But this is neat in that it is long-term, right?" said Meldrum. "It's something that's going to be more permanent and therefore it will be a place that hopefully health-care workers for years will come and enjoy it."
Dave Routledge is the vice-president and head of Western Canada for Oxford Properties and says the company was looking for a way to thank health-care workers for their tireless efforts on the frontline of the pandemic.
"EllisDon was really the genesis of this idea at Foothills," said Routledge. "So they developed it and then we got together in partnership with some other things that we're doing and said, 'It'd be a great idea to roll this out at all four of the hospitals in Calgary."
The benefits are massive for the more than 46,000 care providers in Calgary that include things like the reduction of stress and improvement of overall mental health, increased mental sharpness and attentiveness, enhanced creativity and problem solving and the opportunity to connect informally with multidisciplinary teams to create more collaborative environments.
The Foothills hospital respite space is getting rave reviews from staff like Joanne Haslock, who is a patient care manager with 70 staff working on the COVID ward since March 2020.
"I love it," said Haslock. "I'm often in my office from seven in the morning till four at night, and don't often see that even the sun has been shining, so to be able to come out, it's just wonderful."
She says hospital workers have always focused on patient care and their own families rather then themselves. She said no one anticipated that the pandemic would take such a toll on staff.
"People will say it's part of the job, you don't always take the time to think about what the effects are on yourself," said Haslock.
"These kinds of spaces allow you to do that, it gives you that time away from the unit. Just to actually get off the unit and spend a few minutes outside is just so much more, you're able to energize yourself, reflect and refocus."
The Calgary Health Foundation is looking to raise $250,000 to supplement contributions from Oxford and EllisDon, which is overseeing the building of sites at the Peter Lougheed Centre, South Health Campus and Rockyview General Hospital over the course of the next year.
"They can be individuals like you or I that say this is a great way to support healthcare workers," said Meldrum. "And to show them our gratitude for what they've done with a modest contribution, it all adds up to help make things like this happen."
Learn more about the fundraising campaign online.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.