MENTAL HEALTH AND YOU
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f it’s not your own experience, it could be that of a colleague, a friend, or a loved one. Most likely, someone you know has struggled with mental illness.
One out of every five of us will experience mental health concerns at some point in our lives. And all of us indirectly will be affected. That’s why it’s so important to secure the resources necessary to meet our region’s mental health needs. Royal Columbian Hospital is taking a major step forward this year as construction begins on a new 75-bed Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre. The goal is to offer help to the thousands of people each year who need mental health care. People like Joyce Kubu-Haynes and Janice Kirkrod. In this issue of Your Health Matters, you will find the stories of these two women, who have spent much of their adult lives managing their mental illnesses. Their journeys have included setbacks along the way, but both are grateful for the care that has helped them to remain a part of their communities. Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation proudly commits to raising $9.1 million towards the new Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre. With the generosity of donors like you, we will open this much-needed facility and help people, like Joyce and Janice, who require specialized care to manage their illness and live fulfilling lives.
-Doug Eveneshen
Chair, Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation
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YOUR HEALTH MATTERS I ROYAL COLUMBIAN HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
-Jeff Norris
President & CEO, Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation
Your
Health Matters
CONTENTS
Your
Health Matters
VOLUME 2 • ISSUE 1
ROYAL COLUMBIAN HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
EdITOR Jason Howe
COnTRIBUTInG PHOTOGRAPHERS Jerald Walliser
LAYOUT & dESIGn Gary Slavin
COVER dESIGn Paula Heal
PUBLISHEd BY
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New Westminster Record
We welcome your comments on Your Health Matters magazine. Please email info@rchfoundation.com or write to us c/o Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation, 330 East Columbia Street, New Westminster, BC V3L 3W7.
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Established in 1978, Royal Columbian Hospital
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To donate, please visit or call 604-520-4438.
Rediscovered pleasure
Treatment by gastroenterologist brings relief after 42 years
support training and research. www.rchfoundation.com
Humble legacy
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Light at the end of the tunnel
Work is underway to open a new 75-bed Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre
Release valve
TAVI provides minimally-invasive option to replace heart valve 11
In the family
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Sudden distress
In loving memory of Diane Les
medical equipment, fund innovative programs, and
Inspired giving
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Behind-the-scenes briefs
Foundation raises millions of dollars annually to purchase
Greetings
Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation Chair Doug Eveneshen and Foundation President and CEO Jeff Norris
12 Father and son choose healthy following open heart surgery New parents take comfort in neonatal care following emergency birth 14
Traumatic tear
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Picture perfect
The race to repair the body’s main artery following a collision Q&A with Royal Columbian cardiac catheterization lab nurse Marjorie Colclough
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INSPIRED GIVING The Muslim Business Council of BC raised more than $30,000 during a half hour pledge drive at the group’s annual fundraising dinner in November. The contribution will purchase a transport monitor.
100 Year Journey, an effort to preserve and share the stories of South Asian pioneers to Canada, has also resulted in generous support to BC’s busiest cardiac care centre.
Funding from Variety – The Children’s Charity is helping elevate the mood, encourage communication and reduce anxiety for children admitted to Royal Columbian Hospital’s Pediatric Unit, through a $20,000 grant for music therapy.
Canuck Alumni Association President Gerry Sillers, Alumni members Kirk McLean, Dave Babych, Gino Odjick and Darcy Rota present proceeds from the 2015 Canuck Alumni Golf Classic to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation President/ CEO Jeff Norris and Foundation Board Chair Doug Eveneshen. For the latest Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation news, follow us:
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Facebook: Twitter: subscribing to our 3 On 1 Bymonthly 2 Onwww.facebook.com/ @RoyalColumbian e-newsletter at www.rchfoundation.com
RoyalColumbian
Ed And dIAnE LES have had a great impact on patient care at Royal Columbian Hospital through their thoughtful philanthropy over numerous years.
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Thanks to their generosity and drive, we were able to build the first full GI program to serve the entire health region. I can honestly say it would not have happened without Diane and Ed Les.
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-Dr. Ken Atkinson
HUMBLE LEGACY In loving memory of diane Les
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t was a random fundraising phone call from Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation that brought Diane Les and her husband Ed into the lives of thousands of others. Since that first call some 16 years ago, with a simple request for a $20 donation, the couple’s unassuming generosity has greatly advanced the care provided to a multitude of patients from across the region. Theirs is a love story with a nurturing side. This is evident not only in their thoughtful philanthropy, but also in a marriage that flourished for more than half a century and in the business they CARdIAC ULTRASOUnd, funded in 2010.
founded and grew over a number of decades. And what better business than gardening, where careful nurturing reaps rewards? Diane and Ed’s story began at Buckerfield’s, a garden supply business where in 1957 she was a secretary and he handled packaging and mailing. Ed showed an interest, while Diane was coy. “I’m married,” Ed recalls Diane saying when they first met. “With three kids.” Ed had to find the truth from someone else in the office. She was pulling his leg. It became the truth, however, as Diane and Ed / COnTInUEd On PAGE
nUMEROUS SCOPES have been funded by the Les family over the years.
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/ COnTInUEd FROM PAGE
married within three years of their first date and started a family that grew to three children. They also launched their own business. They took the first two letters from their names to create Eddi’s Wholesale Garden Supplies, a distribution company that initially was run from their home and has successfully grown to employ close to 40 people. From the family’s backyard in Coquitlam, you can clearly see Royal Columbian. On the day the Foundation called, Ed answered. “I need to do something better than that,” he recalls about being asked for $20 to support the hospital. With Crohn’s and colitis in the family, they became interested in the hospital’s need for new scopes. “They’re going to need them. Let’s buy them,” Diane told her husband. Gastroenterologist Dr. Ken Atkinson says the couple’s gift came as his department was looking to expand its services. “Thanks to their generosity and drive, we were able to build the first full GI program to serve the entire health region,” Dr. Atkinson says. “I can honestly say it would not have happened without Diane and Ed Les.” The donation became the first of many substantial gifts made to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation by the humble couple over the next 15 years. In addition to gastroenterology, they have helped make significant purchases for interventional radiology and cardiology. Ed says his wife was generous in nature and pleased to be able to support the hospital. “She felt terrific over it. We had the money, so why not? She was good-hearted,” says Ed. Sadly, Diane was diagnosed with cancer in the summer of 2014 after going to Royal Columbian early one morning, in pain. She passed away on February 10, 2015. “Diane lived her life with passion, warmth and a great sense of humour. She touched so many lives and will be dearly missed by all who knew her,” read her obituary. This is certainly the case at Royal Columbian, where the lives of thousands of people have been made better through the humble support of the Les family. 6
YOUR HEALTH MATTERS I ROYAL COLUMBIAN HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
dIAnE (2nd from left) with a Computer Module Video System, funded for gastroenterology in 2000.
dIAnE with an Intravascular Ultrasound system, funded in 2005.
THROMBECTOMY SYSTEM, funded in 2006
REDISCOVERED PLEASURES
Treatment by gastroenterologist brings relief after 42 years
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good meal is one of life’s pleasures, and it’s one Cheryl Gauld will never take for granted. That’s because for more than four decades, the New Westminster resident could hardly eat anything. From her early twenties to her mid-sixties, she struggled to keep down whatever food she managed to swallow. And often, swallowing was itself a challenge. It wasn’t until she met a Royal Columbian Hospital gastroenterologist that she rediscovered the ability to enjoy one of life’s basic needs. Cheryl says it started at age 22, when she underwent surgery to fix a reflux problem. After a stay in hospital of just under two weeks, Cheryl found she had significant problems eating anything other than soft, bland foods. “It would get lodged in my esophagus tube, and the food would sit there,” Cheryl recalls. “I would have to lay on the floor on all fours and have my back whacked before the food would either come up, I would throw up, or the food would go down.” For Cheryl, eating became a nightmare. “If I was to eat a meal, I would have to eat it very, very slowly. It would probably take me an hour and a half to eat something that would take someone else five minutes.” The problem took a frustrating toll on her social life, as she began to avoid eating in public. “I would usually say I’m not hungry,” she explains. “If I tried to eat, and I got sick and ended up in the washroom, then for most of the evening, people would look at me. I got tired of explaining and never said anything. I would never eat.” Easing tension As the years and decades passed by, Cheryl learned to live with her condition. As she came to terms with her limitations, Cheryl never imagined a solution would arrive during an unrelated medical visit 42 years after first losing the ability to eat normally. After describing her symptoms to a doctor, she was referred to Royal Columbian Hospital gastroenterologist Dr. Ken Atkinson. “I was suspicious that the problem was where they wrapped the muscle around the upper esophagus to correct the reflux problem,” says Dr. Atkinson. “That muscle wasn’t relaxing properly when she swallowed. That’s called achalasia.” Dr. Atkinson wondered whether the answer might involve Botox. Most commonly known for its application cosmetically to reduce wrinkles, Botox has a number of other medical uses.
CHERYL GAULd is enjoying foods that she has been unable to eat for decades following a treatment by Royal Columbian gastroenterologist Dr. Ken Atkinson.
“We use it for other causes of achalasia, so it seemed like it would be an appropriate treatment to try for her,” says Dr. Atkinson. “It will paralyze that part of the muscle for three months. It allows it to relax, so it’s not under tension all the time.” Expanded menu The procedure, done under conscious sedation, takes about 10 minutes and involves an injection of Botox. For Cheryl, it was a miracle. “I could eat. I could actually eat,” says Cheryl with amazement. “I went out a week later, and I had pizza. And I ate it, and I ate everything, and I couldn’t believe it. I started being able to eat chicken, bananas, bread, everything.” She’s very grateful to have been referred to Royal Columbian Hospital and Dr. Atkinson. “It feels like karma that Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation was included in many of my volunteer fundraising efforts, including the Mayor’s Annual Lawn Bowls Tournament of many years as well as being a founding member of the Group of Five and being part of other fundraisers in support of the hospital.” Her Botox treatment is not a permanent fix though. The Botox wears off, and Cheryl goes to the hospital for a new injection every three months. But in her mind, that’s a small price to pay. “I have never felt better than I feel right now,” says Cheryl. “My energy level is good. I feel really healthy.” ROYAL COLUMBIAN HOSPITAL FOUNDATION I YOUR HEALTH MATTERS
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LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL Work is underway to open a new 75-bed Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre
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anice Kirkrod and Joyce Kubuwas changed, and then increased three Haynes have never met, but they years later. share similar stories. Both in their “My podiatrist had come to my home, 70s, they are regularly out and about, and she realized there was something visiting with family and friends and that wasn’t right,” says Joyce about a generally enjoying life. For setback that resulted in a month-long years, both have also been stay in hospital in 2014. treated for mental illFor her part, Janness. ice suffered from Joyce, who lives in severe depression Coquitlam, says in her mid-40s. With my close it started with She had little friends, it’s just a anxiety attacks energy and cried part of my life. I like when she was often. “I’ve been my life right now. 30. “They through quite were bad,” a few medical -Janice Kirkrod she rethings in my life, members. like cancer,” she “I went to says. “But desee my docpression is the worst thing you have to tor, and he go through. It’s just simply horrible.” said I should Medications did not seem to work for be in the hos- her, and the Surrey resident credits pital.” electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for her She would recovery. Janice underwent several eventually be ECT treatments in the 1980s and then diagnosed with again in the 90s when her symptoms schizophrenia. returned. After her initial “I’m not saying those ECT treatments stay in hospital, are a picnic,” says Janice. “But yes, I Joyce managed did get better.” for years with Over the years, both Janice and Joyce the help of her have come under the care of Dr. Hem medications. Phaterpekar, a geriatric psychiatrist But she was at Royal Columbian Hospital. He says again hossetbacks like the ones experienced by pitalized in Joyce and Janice are to be expected 2011 after her when managing significant psychiatric husband’s illnesses. death. Her “These are no different from diabetes prescription or heart problems or lung problems,
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Janice Kirkrod receives regular follow up care at Royal Columbian Hospital following a depression that started in her 40s.
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YOUR HEALTH MATTERS I ROYAL COLUMBIAN HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
which are chronic issues,” says Dr. Phaterpekar. “But we can actually decrease the amount of setbacks. We can also make sure the intensity of the setback is a lot less. We can also respond quickly, and we can also try and prevent these setbacks.” Redevelopment Patients who need to be admitted to Royal Columbian for mental health concerns are currently served by the hospital’s Sherbrooke Centre, an aging building that opened more than 50 years ago as a nurses’ residence. On May 27th, 2015, the province’s health minister announced approval of a plan to replace the Sherbrooke Centre during the first phase of a larger hospital redevelopment. Work is now underway to open a new 75-bed Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre at Royal Columbian in 2019.
nEW Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre. Potential concept only.
It can’t come soon enough for those who work there, like head of psychiatry Dr. Anson Koo. “The Sherbrooke Centre has physical limitations,” he says. “The population has ballooned since the inpatient unit opened in the early 80s.” At four floors, the new centre will offer two and a half times as many beds, including 45 adult inpatient beds, 10 high acuity beds, and, in a first for Fraser Health, a 20-bed Older Adult Psychiatric Unit. “I think in many ways, it’s going to advance mental health care for our seniors population throughout our health region,” says Dr. Koo. “We realize our seniors have special requirements. Many of them are frailer physically. Many of them are at higher risk of falls, fractures and have unique rehabilitation requirements.” Outpatient care will also benefit from the redevelopment. A number of new or expanded clinics will assess, treat and support people with complex mental health and substance issues. And the new facility will serve as the hub for Fraser Health’s psy-
chiatry and mental health education and training through the University of British Columbia’s Faculty of Medicine. It will also provide research opportunities to identify best practices, influence policies and introduce prevention measures. “This will greatly enhance mental health care in our health authority and help people with mental illness who are living in our community,” says Dr. Koo. Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation has committed to raising $9.1 million for the project. Support network Janice and Joyce both say their children have remarked how well they are doing now. The two women have found support among their closest friends and relatives. “Some of them left me and didn’t understand,” notes Joyce. “Then I have friends that are really with me, and one of my girlfriends said she gave me credit for doing something about it. That made me feel good.” “With my close friends, it’s just a part of my life,” says Janice. “I like my life right now.” JOYCE KUBU-HAYnES enjoys independent living as she manages her mental illness.
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RELEASE VALVE dOn WRIGLEY WITH WIFE dOROTHY in front of the carousel that, with his leadership, was acquired, restored, and housed for the City of Burnaby in the early 90s. The pavilion that houses the carousel at Burnaby Village Museum is named in his honour.
TAVI provides minimally-invasive option to replace heart valve
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on Wrigley grew concerned when he started suffering from chest pains and shortness of breath whenever he tended to his garden or walked up his driveway. Testing confirmed the cause: severe aortic stenosis, along with significant coronary artery disease. The Burnaby resident would need a new heart valve. At almost 90 years old, the question became whether open heart surgery was his only option. “I take the garbage out every week, and it’s quite a long walk on our back driveway,” recalls Mr. Wrigley about his condition in the spring of 2014. “Coming back, I always had to stop two or three times because of shortage of breath.” Aortic stenosis is typically found in older adults and
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prevents the aortic valve from fully opening. “As a person ages, just like any other part of the body, the body tissue becomes harder, calcified,” explains Royal Columbian Hospital interventional cardiologist Dr. Albert Chan. The usual treatment is open heart surgery to replace the valve with an artificial one. Mr. Wrigley wasn’t keen on the solution. “I didn’t like the sound of that and the recovery involved,” he notes. non-surgical approach Dr. Chan is among the physicians who have begun a new approach that avoids the need for a large incision. The minimallyinvasive procedure, done at Royal Columbian and only two other hospitals in British Columbia, is known as TAVI, or transcatheter aortic valve implantation.
YOUR HEALTH MATTERS I ROYAL COLUMBIAN HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
“In the last dozen years, TAVI has increasingly become common,” says Dr. Chan. “During the procedure, we put in a new valve by threading a catheter up from the groin artery to the heart.” Generally, TAVI is reserved for older patients who are high-risk surgically. Younger patients are typically still offered surgery, since surgical valves have a longer track record. But improvements have come with newer generation valves. “The first generation did not allow any repositioning,” says Dr. Chan. “So you had one shot to deploy the valve. Now with the newer generation, if it’s not perfectly placed in the first try, we can always retrieve it, reposition it, and redeploy it until we are perfectly happy with the position.” As knowledge about TAVI grows, technology improves and some of the shortcomings with the
early generation devices are overcome, Dr. Chan believes more patients may be considered for the procedure. “It’s less invasive, there’s a much quicker recovery and with a very acceptable complication rate that is comparable to surgery or sometimes even better than surgery,” says Dr. Chan. Mr. Wrigley first had three stents implanted, followed later by TAVI from Dr. Chan and Dr. Daniel Wong. He and another man from Kelowna shared a piece of Royal Columbian history by becoming the first two patients at the hospital to receive the newer generation Lotus valve. Mr. Wrigley says the results were dramatic. “It was like night and day,” he says. “As a result of the TAVI procedure, I am basically back to normal to what I used to do in the garden.”
IN THE FAMILY
Father and son choose healthy following open heart surgery
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he expression like father, like son took on new significance for the Bola family in Surrey, after Pritam Singh (Peter) Bola and his father Santokh Singh Bola both underwent open heart surgery at Royal Columbian Hospital - a month apart from each other. For the patriarch of the family, it started with chest pains. Testing revealed one of Santokh Singh’s arteries was completely blocked, and the 84-year old required bypass surgery at Royal Columbian – the region’s cardiac care centre. Meanwhile, his 59-year old son was surprised to learn he too would need to undergo the same procedure. Pritam Singh’s doctors had grown concerned about his high blood pressure and sent him for a treadmill stress test followed by a coronary angiogram. He discovered a number of arteries were blocked to various degrees. “It was kind of a surprise to me,” says Pritam Singh. “I was always fit, going to the gym and exercising.” Second life His father was scheduled for bypass surgery first, which gave Pritam Singh time to watch Santokh Singh recover under the supervision of the hospital’s cardiac care team. “After nine days of my father there, I had a very good picture of what I would go through,” recalls Pritam Singh, who had his surgery the following month. “It was decided there is no choice; if I want to live, then I have to have this surgery done,” says Pritam Singh. “Otherwise, it could be a silent heart attack, with no control, because you wouldn’t even know.” Now both back home and doing well, Pritam Singh says they are grateful to Royal Columbian Hospital. “I am so surprised at how much qualified medical doctors can do,” says Pritam Singh. “It’s like a second life to me, and to my father also. He’s feeling the same. They have given us our lives back.” He says they have made adjustments in order to live healthier, including a change in their diets. “No red meat. No sugar. Fruits, veggies,” says Pritam Singh.
SAnTOKH SInGH BOLA and son Pritam Singh (Peter) Bola underwent open heart surgery a month apart after blockages were detected in their arteries.
A year inside BC’s busiest cardiac care centre: • 950 open heart surgeries • 2,300 angioplasties • More than 1,150 patients in cardiac surgery ICU
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SUDDEN DISTRESS
CHARLOTTE, playing with her parents at home, more than two years after being born prematurely at only two pounds eight ounces.
new parents take comfort in neonatal care following emergency birth
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he first seven months felt remarkably smooth For Lindsay, the transfer to Royal Columbian was for Lindsay Davidson, who was preparing for a blur. Ben followed the ambulance along the the arrival of their first child with husband highway in his own vehicle as they headed to New Ben Abel. But a routine check-up at 30 weeks Westminster. sent the North Vancouver couple into a week-long “To be moved was kind of reassuring for me,” says tailspin that eventually brought them to Royal CoBen. “Because you knew they would be able to lumbian Hospital for an emergency delivery and an handle it at that hospital, whatever happened.” anxious introduction to parenthood. During the check-up, Lindsay’s blood Bring control pressure was high enough that she They said my organs Royal Columbian Hospital neonatolowas sent to the local hospital for were shutting down. gist Dr. Mudaffer Al-Mudaffer says bed rest and monitoring. There, she That’s when they made preeclampsia can be life-threatening was diagnosed with preeclampsia, the decision to transfer to the mother and subsequently to a potentially life-threatening condi- me to Royal Columbian. her yet-to-be-born baby if it becomes tion that occurs in a small number of out of control. pregnancies. “It can cause problems to the baby’s -Lindsay Davidson “They were watching to see signs of brain, the bowels, the lungs, and distress in the baby and in me,” rethese can suffer from growth restriccalls Lindsay. “Five days later, they said my organs tion with all its complications” he says. “The blood were shutting down. That’s when they made the pressure to the mother can become so high and decision to transfer me to Royal Columbian.” out of control, so the only way to bring control is As a high-risk maternity centre with one of only to get the baby out.” four Level 3 neonatal intensive care units in the Doctors at Royal Columbian first tried to induce province, Royal Columbian Hospital cares for Lindsay before deciding on an emergency caesarexpectant mothers and premature newborns from ean section. “There were so many people in the throughout BC. room,” Lindsay notes. “I was very worried about
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the drugs, and the anesthesiologist was very reassuring.” Soon, Charlotte was born at 31 weeks and five days, weighing only two pounds eight ounces. “I remember sitting back down and being quite emotional about it,” says Ben. There were more anxious times ahead, as Charlotte was taken to the neonatal intensive care unit, where she would spend close to two months getting stronger and healthier. Close bonds “When you have a baby who is premature, it’s not the journey you had expected,” says Lindsay. “But we had the best, most positive experience at Royal Columbian.” Lindsay and Ben made daily trips back to Royal Columbian as Charlotte gradually overcame the challenges of being born early. “Babies that are born prematurely can get into breathing issues,” notes Dr. Al-Mudaffer. “They can’t breathe on their own, so they need help, whether it’s from a breathing tube or in the form of CPAP with a little mask on the nose. Also, they can’t feed right away, so we have to give them what they need nutrition-wise to help them grow. They are at high risk for infection. They get jaundice more than others. Also, they can get feeding intolerance. So it’s a magnitude of problems that affects almost every VEnTILATORS are a key system.” piece of equipment inside the “There were all these neonatal intensive care unit. milestones they wanted her to reach, which is stressful, but then when she reached them it was amazing,” says Lindsay. The couple formed strong bonds with hospital staff and other parents during their time in the NICU. They remain grateful to the team that includes doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists and social workers, many of whose names are quickly recalled during a conversation more than two years later. As for Charlotte, she’s now a healthy, happy and energetic child. “I am so happy and proud of her,” says Dr. AlMudaffer. “Very energetic, full of life, very pleasant and always when she comes to the office, it’s a welcome visit.” “She’s go, go, go, it’s non-stop,” says Lindsay. “She’s two and a half, and she doesn’t sit still.” “But we knew that even before she was born,” adds Ben. ROYAL COLUMBIAN HOSPITAL FOUNDATION I YOUR HEALTH MATTERS
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SCOTT MCGILLIVRAY suffered a lifethreatening tear in his main artery after a collision while riding his motorcycle.
nal injuries such as spleen, liver or bowel injury, multiple broken bones and/or nerve injuries.” says Fyvie. “Motorcyclists often sustain severe injuries that are permanently life -altering.” Not surprisingly, McGillivray has only partial memories of his arrival to the hospital. He remembers waking up as he was getting a CT scan. By then, his wife had arrived and was told surgery would be needed to fix the aorta. “Aortic injuries are often fatal,” notes Fyvie. “The aorta is the main artery that comes off the heart, so if you tear your aorta and still make it to the hospital alive, you are considered fortunate. Depending on the severity of the injury, you may need urgent specialized surgery. In Fraser Health, it’s only done at Royal Columbian.” The surgery is long and complicated. McGillivray’s took several hours, as cardiac surgeon Dr. Derek The race to repair the body’s main Gunning excised the damaged segartery following a collision ment of the aorta and repaired the defect with a synthetic graft, while McGillivray’s heart was connected t was a beautiful, unseasonbrother-in-law was the lead parato a bypass machine to keep the ably hot spring day in the Lower medic on the scene. The ambulance blood circulating through the rest of Mainland, the start of what turned soon headed straight the body during the out to be the longest warm spell of for Royal Columbian operation. 2009. For Scott McGillivray, it was Hospital. McGillivray recovered When I woke up, I was a perfect day to cruise home from in the Cardiac Surlying on the road on work on his one-year-old Victory gery Intensive Care Surgical repairs my right side, and I Jackpot motorcycle. He was in Unit before moving When the weather was having trouble Cloverdale, close to his destination, warms up, Trauma to a regular ward for breathing. when a truck swerved into him. The a couple of weeks. Service Nurse Practiaccident left Scott with a number Today, he still gets tioner Kathleen Fyvie of injuries, including several shatoccasional pains that says the ER can expect -Scott McGillivray tered ribs and a broken shoulder remind him of his an increase in motorblade. But it was a tear in the body’s cyclists with crash-related injuries. crash, but he’s working again and main artery that put his life most in She says regardless of who is at fault agrees he’s lucky to be alive. While danger. he’s still tempted to get back on a in a crash, the motorcyclist rarely “When I woke up, I was lying on the motorcycle, he’s taking his wife’s escapes unscathed. road on my right side, and I was advice and staying away from bikes. “We often see motorcyclists who having trouble breathing,’ remem“If my brother-in-law hadn’t taken have sustained multiple injuries, bers McGillivray. “I could hear voicme to Royal Columbian directly, I which can include brain injuries, es saying ‘Don’t move your neck.” would probably be dead,” he confacial injuries, spinal cord injuries, By coincidence, McGillivray’s rib fractures, collapsed lungs, inter- cludes.
TRAUMATIC TEAR
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YOUR HEALTH MATTERS I ROYAL COLUMBIAN HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
Interview
PICTURE PERFECT Marjorie Colclough is a registered nurse who took a lead role as Royal Columbian Hospital works to upgrade its cardiac catheterization labs, which are the busiest in the province. Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation, during its Cardiac Care Campaign, is working with donors to raise $3.3 million for this project.
Foundation: The current equipment in the two cath labs is more than ten years old. How much has technology and equipment changed? MC: It’s changed a lot. I think the biggest thing for me in the new equipment is something you can’t see with your eye, and that’s the radiation. From the time that I started doing angiograms to the time we have come to now, radiation safety has really come to the forefront, not just for the staff but for our patients. When we can get newer, better equipment that reduces radiation exposure, it’s better for patients and staff.
make a picture bigger on your phone. That allows us to get a closer look at small details.
Foundation: In addition to better radiation safety for patients and staff, what other improvements will you see? MC: We will have much better quality imaging, clearer pictures. Think of your television. If you watch a TV program in HD, and then you watch it without HD, that’s what it’s like. You get a much better, clearer picture of what you are seeing.
Foundation: I understand you will be able to combine CT scans with live x-ray images. MC: That’s more for the structural work that we do. When you can combine the two, you can see more where you need to go or what you need to do. If you can get more of a 3D rather than a 2D visual, it gives us so much more access to the patient and it allows for faster procedures.
Foundation: No doubt the new 56inch screens will help provide better images. MC: The new screens will be big! When we do a procedure, we are watching the screen at all times. As well as having bigger and better screens, we will be able to zero in on something, almost like how you can
Foundation: Having all this new technology will make us a model site for others, I assume. MC: We’ll be a showcase site. We will have top-of-the-line equipment. Also, we are such a busy cath lab and do so many more cases than anyone else in the province. We will really be a highlight.
Foundation: Patient monitoring is being upgraded too. What does that offer? MC: We are constantly monitoring patients’ vital signs and rhythms to make sure they are safe at all times during a procedure. We monitor their blood pressure, their vital signs and their oxygen saturations. All those components will be improved and easier to see with the new equipment.
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Wesgroup is a proud supporter of the Royal Columbian Hospital and an advocate to advancing the health care facilities in BC’s fastest growing region.
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