Friday, October 7th was Pink Day at our Hospital, an event where staff members were encouraged to wear pink to work to help raise awareness about the importance of breast cancer screening.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in Ontario women with one in eight women being diagnosed with it in their lifetime. However, breast cancer has one of the highest survival rates of all cancers in Ontario. Regular breast cancer screening with a mammogram is important to help find breast cancer early. Talk to your primary care provider about your cancer screening options.

Are you up-to-date on your breast cancer screening? Women between the ages of 50 and 74 should have a mammogram every two years. You can book your mammogram today by calling (807) 684-7777. No referral is required.

During week two (October 9 – 15) of Healthy Workplace Month, we are focusing on the physical environment. Join us for virtual deskercise sessions or to learn tips and recommendations from a panel of ergonomics experts. The schedule of activities can be found below.

If you missed last week’s events, you can view the recordings at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTa7qzg85cRQDq1s3OVj2kg. The survey link for prizes can be found in each video’s description.

From October 9 – 15, 2022, we recognize the 100th anniversary of Fire Prevention Week. This year’s theme is “Fire Won’t Wait. Plan Your Escape!” See the fire safety sheet below for more information.

Shared on behalf of Infection Prevention and Control

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An outbreak of COVID-19 has been declared on 2A Medical Inpatient Unit as of October 6, 2022. All restrictions are in place.

Please share this information with the appropriate staff.

As always, our number one priority is the safety of patients and their families, staff and visitors. All patients identified as having an exposure to this outbreak will require isolation with appropriate additional precautions.

The department of Infection Prevention and Control encourages everyone to keep applying the routine practices of hand hygiene, proper use of PPE, equipment cleaning, and the appropriate admission screening of all patients. Please set an example for staff and students and assist us by maintaining compliance and due diligence.

For more information, contact Infection Prevention and Control at extension 6094

Shared on behalf of Mēsha Richard, Lead, Emergency Preparedness

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After two years of modifications due to COVID-19, this year’s Minimum Staffing Drill (Code Red to Code Green) held on September 22, 2022 was a success! The drill was intended to test the Hospital’s ability to evacuate patients from a designated unit during hours with minimal staffing levels and was timed by Thunder Bay Fire Rescue (TBFR). This year our evacuation was carried out on time, with demonstrated patient centered care at all times, and overall positive evaluation from TBFR observers.

Emergency Preparedness would like to convey our sincere thanks to all drill participants, and our fellow exercise planning committee members, for their active engagement regarding this year’s drill. We particularly appreciate the enthusiasm and flexibility exhibited by the staff on 3C Neuro who acted as the simulated site of fire origin requiring a Code Green – STAT response. We would further like to extend our gratitude to Hospital leadership for their continual endorsement of this annual requirement.

We hope that by participating in this year’s drill hospital staff have gained practical learning experience. Your valuable input is welcome to improve policies and procedures, as well as enhance the quality of similar exercises and trainings in the future. Please consider emailing your drill feedback to TBRHSC.EmergencyPreparedness@tbh.net.

We once again thank you all for making this occurrence a success, as it is everyone’s energy and commitment that makes these drills possible and meaningful!

Chair, Board of Directors, Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre

With children back in school and our communities back from summer vacation, I truly hope the residents of Northwestern Ontario took the opportunity to enjoy our natural surroundings and safely reconnect with friends and loved ones over the past few months.

At the same time, I would like to begin by acknowledging and thanking our frontline health care workers and Hospital staff who had very little downtime the past few months as we continued to face challenges due to the ongoing pandemic. As you know, health care does not take holidays and our staff are working as hard today as they were when this pandemic began. They continue to earn our respect and admiration on a daily basis.

Before the break, our Hospital celebrated another year of success at the Annual Meeting of the Corporation on June 23. Returning to the Board of Directors for three-year terms are Douglas Judson, Matt Simeoni and John Hatton. Continuing their terms of office on the Board are Pat Lang, Joy Wakefield, John Friday, Glen Currie, Monique Rocheleau, Christine Bates, Bonnie Pelletier, Dr. Andrew Dean and Dr. Pamela Wakewich. Returning as Standing Committee Community Members are Pauline Mickelson with Patient Safety and Quality of Care, Michael Pelletier with Governance and Nominating and Christina Brassard with Resource Planning and Audit. Kathleen Sawdo was recognized for serving as a Community Member for the past three years with Resource Planning and Audit.

The Board includes the following ex-officio Directors: Dr. Rhonda Crocker Ellacott, President and CEO, Adam Vinet, Chief Nursing Executive, Dr. Bradley Jacobson, Chief of Staff, Dr. Sarita Verma, Dean, President and CEO, NOSM University, and Dr. Salima Oukachbi, President, Professional Staff Association.

At the Inaugural meeting of the Board of Directors, held immediately following the Annual Meeting, the Officers of the Corporation were elected as follows, including myself continuing as Chair, Pat Lang as 1st Vice Chair, Matt Simeoni as 2nd Vice Chair, and John Hatton as Board Treasurer. Joy Wakefield was elected as Chair of the Patient Safety and Quality of Care Committee. Christine Bates was elected to the new Officer position of Chair of the Human Resources Committee.

I look forward to a productive and meaningful year serving with these dedicated people. Our focus is on achieving the Hospital’s Mission to provide quality care to patients and families supported and advanced by research, innovation, and education that is responsive to the needs of the population of Northwestern Ontario and our Vision to provide Exceptional care for every patient, every time.

Finally, our Hospital joined countless others across Canada last week to recognize National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, also known as Orange Shirt Day, on September 30. Reconciliation begins with acknowledging the truth. As part of our commitment to truth and reconciliation, we will work toward creating an environment at our Hospital that acknowledges the 94 Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and to apply them as a lens to every decision we make as an institution. In doing so, we will be assured of delivering the highest levels of compassion, inclusion and health care to every person and patient we see and treat.

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (September 30th) honours the lost children and survivors of residential schools, their families and communities. It was moving to see so many people wearing orange shirts, for September 30th is also Orange Shirt Day — an Indigenous-led grassroots commemorative day based on the experience of Phyllis Webstad, a Northern Secwpemc (Shuswap) from the Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation. On her first day of school, she arrived dressed in a new orange shirt, which was taken from her. It is now a symbol of the stripping away of culture, freedom and self-esteem experienced by Indigenous children over generations.

Thank you to all Hospital staff, professional staff, volunteers and learners who participated by wearing orange shirts.

Special thanks also goes out to Elder Ernie Kwandibens, who guided the construction of the tipi, Elder Myria Esquega who led the ceremonial opening of the tipi, and Ryan Pooman, the artist who created the beautiful mural at the foot of the Grand Staircase.

We hope you were able to take a few moments to reflect on how people in our region have been, and continued to be, impacted.

On September 30, the Sodexo team at Flavours Cafeteria ( 8 team members pictured above) recognized the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day by wearing orange shirts and providing a menu featuring traditional Indigenous foods.