Halloween is a fun, and spooky, time of year for kids. Make trick-or-treating safe for everyone with a few easy safety tips:
When choosing a costume, stay away from long trailing fabric and make sure eye holes in masks are large enough to see out of.
Provide children with flashlights or glow sticks as part of their costume.
Dried flowers, cornstalks, and crepe paper catch fire easily. Keep all decorations away from open flames and other heat sources.
Use battery-operated candles or glow-sticks in jack-o’lanterns. If you use real candles, use extreme caution. Be sure to place lit pumpkins well away from anything that can burn and far enough out of the way of trick-or-treaters.
Keep exits clear of decorations, so nothing blocks escape routes.
Make sure all smoke alarms in the home are working.
Tell children to stay away from open flames including jack-o-lanterns with candles in them. Be sure they know how to stop, drop and roll if their clothing catches fire. (Have them practice, stopping immediately, dropping to the ground, covering their face with hands, and rolling over and over to put the flames out.)
Have questions or feedback? Contact Mēsha Richard, Lead, Emergency Preparednessatmesha.richard@tbh.net.
For more information about staying fire safe this Halloween, check out nfpa.org/education
Shared on behalf of behalf of Ryan Sears, Director, Capital & Facilities Services
Please be advised that a Code Red to Code Green-STAT Evacuation drill is scheduled for Thursday October 12, 2023 at 20:30h. The exercise will be simulated to reflect hospital operations at 03:00h, when staffing levels are at their lowest. Mock patients will be evacuated from 3A. This exercise is required by the Ontario Fire Code and will be evaluated by internal observers and representatives from Thunder Bay Fire Rescue.
Managers
Circulate this memo and attachments to staff, including employees without regular access to email, and post the drill poster in your unit (see attached).
Distribute the attached Memo to Patients/Visitors and PFAs.
Ensure that the most up to date policy versions for Code Red (EMER-30) and Code Green (EMER-90), as well as applicable department sub plans, are in your area’s emergency binder.
All staff
Review the Hospital’s Code Red & Code Green policies, as well as applicable department sub plans, and be aware of any instructions specific to your role and department.
What am I expected to do?
Areas that normally operate at 0300h will respond as per Code Red and Code Green policies and relevant sub plans.
Upon hearing “Code Green STAT + Location” each unit will send one staff member to the evacuation site to assist, unless the unit’s sub plan indicates otherwise.
Staff are to remain in their unit until “Code Green Drill – All Clear” is announced overhead, unless they have been assigned to respond.
Staff are to inform patients and visitors that there is a drill in progress.
All participating departments are to complete a Code Red eObservation Form.
What happens if a real emergency occurs during the drill?
To communicate a real Code Red or Code Green during the exercise, the code word (to be stated over any phone/radio/paging system) is: “NO DUFF, NO DUFF + relevant colour code announcement.”
If the drill must be stopped due to real emergency, Switchboard will immediately announce “Code Red + Green Drill – All Clear” overhead, followed by “NO DUFF, NO DUFF + relevant colour code announcement”.
Thank you for your participation and cooperation. Any questions or concerns can be directed to Mēsha Richard, Lead, Emergency Preparedness (ext. 6552 or mesha.richard@tbh.net).
The second full week of each October (8-14) is dedicated to celebrating the important role of Medical Device Reprocessing Departments (MDRD) across the country, just like the one at our Hospital. The MDRD staff is made up of certified technicians that wash, inspect, assemble, wrap, sterilize and distribute instruments to the Operating Room and clinics throughout the Hospital. With a focus on patient safety and quality assurance, the proper reprocessing of reusable patient care items is more important than it ever has been. Staff in the MDRD work almost 24/7 to make sure physicians, nurses and surgeons have the clean sterile instruments they need to provide exceptional care for every patient, every time.
Friday, October 6th 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. Thank you to everyone who stopped by Prevention and Screening’s booth to learn more about breast cancer screening and support our #BreastFriends photo contest.
To participate in this contest and other Breast Cancer Awareness Month activities, visit the Screen for Life Coach social media pages @ScreenforLifeCoachNorthwest.
Friday, October 6 is 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.
Stop by Prevention and Screening’s booth at the bottom of the main staircase on October 6 between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. to learn more about cancer screening and to have your photo taken.
Sonography Week (October 2-6) is an opportunity to recognize and promote the profession of Diagnostic Medical Sonography (ultrasound) which plays a vital role in the care and treatment of community members.
Sonographers are medical detectives. They use their ultrasound training, technical skills, and understanding of the human body and its systems to decide if structures are normal or abnormal and adapt their investigation as they find clues throughout an examination. This information is then used by doctors to determine the necessary treatment or next steps for the patient.
A sonographer uses an instrument called a transducer or probe on a patient over the area of the body under investigation. The probe emits high-frequency sound which is inaudible to the human ear. As the probe is moved around it records echoes as sound waves bounce back to the ultrasound machine to determine size, shape and consistency of soft tissues. This information is relayed in real-time to produce images on a computer screen.
The quality of an ultrasound exam is very dependent on the skills of the sonographer who completed the scan. If they are not a great detective who takes in all the evidence and finds all the clues, then it is difficult to solve the case. As well, no two cases are ever the same, so a sonographer’s day is never dull.
Sonography is a growing, dynamic profession and sonographers are in demand in hospitals, medical imaging clinics and tertiary healthcare facilities. Many sonographers are also employed as educators, application specialists or sales representatives with medical equipment manufacturing firms, or as researchers.
Did you know?
The gooey gel that people relate to ultrasound exams is necessary for sound waves to travel between the probe and the patient.
Ultrasound exams can last between 20 and 60 minutes with the sonographer in very close proximity to the patient.
Not all sonographers perform all types of exams. Learning different body systems requires special training and separate written and clinical examinations. Students graduate with knowledge of basic exams and can then further their specialization and knowledge if they desire.
At TBRHSC, pregnancy ultrasound is a very small portion of our workload. Most exams at our site relate to abdomen, pelvic, arterial and venous, breast, scrotal, prostate, thyroid, neonatal brain and muscle and tendon studies.
The sonography programs in Canada vary in focus and length. Individuals can be trained in three areas: generalist, cardiac or vascular sonography. For more information and a list of accredited training programs, visit the Sonography Canada website: https://sonographycanada.ca/
Most sonographers LOVE ultrasound and love talking about it, so next time you come across one of these allied health professionals, ask them about their dynamic career.
The Health Sciences Foundation Family CARE (Care Advancement Recommended by Employees) Grants are here to help you — the family of health care providers that make the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre the excellent facility it is. Family CARE grants can be used to improve the care you give every day. Listen for patient and family suggestions when brainstorming ideas. Initiatives that improve the care we can provide benefit us all!
Download the form (or see below) and submit your completed application to the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Foundation (Foundation President’s Office, Room 2232) by Friday, October 20, 2023 at 4:00 p.m. EST.
If you have any questions, please contact Sarah Miniaci, Executive Coordinator at ext. 7276 or visit room 2232
September 29th is World Heart Day. Created by the World Heart Federation, World Heart Day informs people around the globe that cardiovascular disease (CVD), including heart disease and stroke, is the world’s leading cause of death claiming 18.6 million lives each year, and highlights the actions that individuals can take to prevent and control CVD. It aims to drive action to educate people that by controlling risk factors such as tobacco use, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity, at least 80% of premature deaths from heart disease and stroke could be avoided.
World Heart Day is a global campaign during which individuals, families, communities, and governments around the world participate in activities to take charge of their heart health and that of others. Through this campaign, the World Heart Federation unites people from all countries and backgrounds in the fight against the CVD burden and inspires and drives international action to encourage heart-healthy living across the world.
