Each year, living donor transplants save the lives of hundreds of Canadians awaiting a liver or kidney transplant. Living organ donation offers a shorter pathway to better health with a less wait time and better health outcomes than a deceased donor transplant. Yet many Canadians are not aware of living organ donation.

Living Donation Week (September 11-17), is a national awareness week featuring free virtual events and activities focused on improving access and equity in living organ donation, profiling the work of Team Transplant, and celebrating incredible living donors and transplant recipients.

Living Donation Week features:

• landmarks lit up green and local partner events in communities from coast to coast
• a virtual Celebration Livestream featuring living donation stories, interviews, entertainment, living donor medal selfies and more
• a gratitude wall to share messages of thanks to your living donor, recipient and everyone who supported your journey. Post your message early and it may be read out during the Celebration Event on September 12
• a hands-on online workshop on how to share your story and begin the search for a living donor for people with end stage kidney or liver disease and their caregivers and friends
• a Canada-wide Pitch Competition highlighting living donation care, research & education, co-sponsored by the Ajmera Transplant Centre and the Canadian Donation & Transplantation Research Program (CDTRP)
• the launch of a national public awareness campaign on living organ donation.

Living Donation Week (LDW) invites the living donor and transplant community to come together, celebrate and spread the word about this life-changing gift, and everyone who makes it possible. LDW was launched by the Centre for Living Organ Donation at UHN in 2020 and is now celebrated annually across Canada and beyond, starting the Sunday after Labour Day.

Learn more and register here for events here: http://bit.ly/LDW22Share.

Shared on behalf of Infection Prevention and Control

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An outbreak of COVID-19 has been declared on 3A Surgical Inpatient Unit as of September 7, 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 Infection Prevention and Control

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Please be advised that the COVID-19 outbreak has been declared over at 1A Medical Inpatient Unit as of September 6, 2022. All restrictions have been lifted.

Please share this information with the appropriate staff. For more information, please contact Infection Prevention and Control, Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre at 684-6094

A New School Year!

Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre in collaboration with Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board and Community Living Thunder Bay, are pleased to be the first Project SEARCH team in Northern Ontario.

Project SEARCH is a ten-month unpaid internship program for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities in their last year of high school. In tandem with classroom learning, students participate in three ten-week internships over the course of the school year to explore a variety of career paths. The ultimate goal of the program is to prepare the students to be a productive and competent employee who can be hired within our community.

As we welcome the 2022/23 school year you will see new faces around our Hospital! Please give a warm welcome to the teachers from TBCDSB, employment support workers from CLTB and students to our Hospital.

For more information, please visit: https://www.tbcschools.ca/education/project-search-thunder-bay or reach out to Kelsee Fischer via email at kelsee.fischer@tbh.net

CERAH, Lakehead University, is pleased to offer our online Summit in a different format this year to make it as accessible as possible to healthcare providers. The Summit features 4 presentations held every Thursday in November. There is no cost to attend this accredited event and sessions will be recorded and accessible to registered participants for 30 days.

The Summit begins on November 3rd with a presentation open to community members on End of Life Doulas. The final evening presentation will feature an exclusive half-hour session for physician and nurse practitioners.

Please see attached poster with further information along with the link for registration here: https://cerah.lakeheadu.ca/events/2022-northwestern-ontario-palliative-care-online-summit/

We hope you will join us as we explore approaches in palliative care addressing diversity, culture, dignity, respect and anti-racism, which can elicit better outcomes for individuals and families facing a chronic or terminal illness.

This one-credit-per-hour group learning program meets the certification criteria of the College of Family Physicians of Canada and has been certified by the Continuing Education and Professional Development Office at NOSM University for up to 6 Mainpro+ credit(s).

A special thank you to Prostate Cancer Support Thunder Bay for their generous donation of $25,000. Their will provide funding into prostate cancer research and treatments for patients in our region. It will also help other rural and remote cancer programs around the world.

Shared on behalf of Ron Turner, Director Medicine, Renal and Cardiovascular Services

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I am pleased to announce that Chris McNaughton has accepted the Administrative Manager: 2A,
2B and TCU position.

Effective Monday, October 10, 2022, Chris will report to Ron Turner, Director Medicine, Renal
and Cardiovascular Services and will have operational oversight of the above mentioned
inpatient units.

Chris has worked at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre since 2004. He started at the
hospital as a staff nurse on the 1A Medical/Oncology Unit and took on his current leadership role
as the Manager of the 1A Medical/Oncology Inpatient Unit and the Complex Malignant
Hematology Clinic in 2014.

Over the years Chris has led or supported many unit-based and organizational initiatives that have
improved staff satisfaction and the experiences of our patients and their families. In this new
position his continued focus on accountability and his commitment to quality care will be a
valuable asset to the units he supports, as well as our portfolio more broadly.

Please join us in welcoming Chris to his new role.

Shared on behalf of Laura Lee Barrie, Director Surgical and Ambulatory Services

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I am pleased to announce that Mike Martin has accepted the position of Administrative Manager, 3A, 3B, 3C and Neurosurgery effective October 10, 2022.

Mike will report to Laura Lee Barrie, Director Surgical and Ambulatory Services and will have operational oversight of the above-mentioned inpatient units.

Mike holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Degree and has led various initiatives and process improvement projects within TBRHSC and across the Northwest Region over the last eight years. He is currently the Manager, Ambulatory Mental Health and Supportive Care Services.

Please join us in welcoming Mike Martin to his new role.