The Canadian Society of Respiratory Therapists (CSRT) proclaims the last week in October as Respiratory Therapy Week in Canada, to celebrate the respiratory therapy profession and the outstanding dedication and passion of Respiratory Therapists (RTs). This includes all areas of respiratory therapy practice, including anesthesia assistance.

RTs are highly-skilled health care professionals. They have specialized medical expertise and use their knowledge and skills to provide safe, high-quality care. If you have medical problems that may be caused by cardiorespiratory or respiratory-related issues, RTs are the experts who will work with you to diagnose, treat and manage your condition.

Within our Hospital there are always RTs working hard 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, across all patient populations. They can be found in the Emergency Department (ED), Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Neonatal ICU, Operating Room (OR), pulmonary function lab, stress lab, and are on call for all inpatients. RTs perform a number of vital roles throughout our Hospital. They are called for all high-risk deliveries including C-sections, traumas, conscious sedations, cardioversions, puffer administration and education, arterial blood gases, insertion of arterial catheters, non-invasive mechanical ventilation, (like CPAPs or BiPAPs), high flow oxygen therapy, and so much more.

Join us in thanking our RTs for their vital contributions to patient care.

On Thursday, October 27, 2022 from 12:00pm to 1:00pm EDT, join Niki Kiepek, PhD in exploring harm reduction in acute care settings. Join via Zoom link:  https://lakeheadu.zoom.us/j/95940005833
For more information, contact Loretta Delea at 343-8010 ext. 8126 or chce@lakeheadu.ca

*Deadline to sign up is October 28 by the end of the day*

For more information on this year’s Take Our Kids to Work Day, please visit the intranet.

Representatives from Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre’s Human Resources Department are attending Lakehead University’s Career Fair on October 25, to share TBRHSC’s opportunities and network with Lakehead students, new graduates, and alumni.

CrossFit Fundraiser Taking Place in Thunder Bay

Superior CrossFit is putting a local twist on the worldwide CrossFit initiative Barbells for Boobs. Rather than send the proceeds from its fundraiser to the event’s international fund, it donates them locally to the Health Sciences Foundation’s Northern Cancer Fund for breast cancer.

From 10 am to 12 pm on Saturday, October 29, Superior CrossFit will be holding quick workouts at 15 minute intervals for people of all workout levels. “It’s all inclusive for everyone. Everyone can participate. Everyone can donate,” says event organizer Ron Rost. “People can gather a group and book a time to do it together. I have some groups booked already.”

Pre-registration is not necessary. Attendees are asked to make a donation at the door to participate. And, because the event is so close to Halloween, attendees are encouraged to dress in Halloween costumes. There will be a prize for the best costume!

Superior CrossFit has raised around $14,500 locally for breast cancer care over the past five years of hosting the Barbells for Boobs event. “Our goal is to raise just over $5,500 to bring our total donations from the event to $20,000,” says Rost.

For more information, call Superior CrossFit at 252-8777. It is located at 712 Vickers Street North.

Shared on behalf of Jennifer Wintermans, Vice President, Quality & Corporate Affairs

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As required by the Municipal Elections Act, we are supporting the opportunity for voting on Monday, October 24, 2022 for the City of Thunder Bay municipal election. If a patient has their Voter Information Letter (VIL) containing their PIN (which the patient will have already received via mail), they can vote via the free Wi-Fi on their personal device. However, if they do not have their VIL and PIN, and still wish to vote, there will be City of Thunder Bay Election Officers on-site to bring voting options for the municipal election to our Hospital.

The on-site election staff will have the ability to confirm the elector and activate their right to vote. The patient would be issued a PIN number so that they could cast their ballot online via their personal device. There will also be the option to vote in person at the Hospital with a ballot, should it be required.

In addition, if staff have their VIL and/or wish to utilize these services they can also vote.  

The on-site polling station will be located outside Volunteer Services and will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. EST.

As an FYI, voting information leaflets (attached) will be included in patient meal trays starting Friday, October 21.

Managers are asked to post this memo for all staff, and encourage staff to inform patients of their voting options.

For more information on voting, please contact Thunder Bay Votes at thunderbayvotes@thunderbay.ca or call 807-622-VOTE (8683).

Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Waste Reduction Week in Canada takes place from October 17-23, 2022. It is an opportunity to celebrate our environmental efforts and achievements to date, and encourage new ideas and solutions to reduce our waste. Reducing the amount of waste you create is an easy way that you can help make a difference.

TBRHSC’s Green Team is committed to reducing our environmental footprint and supporting these efforts through our extensive recycling programs onsite which includes:

• All Plastics #1 – #7
• Cardboard & Paper
• Cans & Scrap Metal
• Batteries
• Electronic Waste

We have started to setup ‘Green Suites’ within select departments, for those areas looking to champion their department’s recycling initiatives. These ‘Green Suites’ are a centralized area for managing and sorting recycle materials to minimize the amount of waste going to landfill.

We are also working on introducing two new recycling programs onsite:

1. PPE Recycling:
   1. Includes recycling of uncontaminated masks/gloves/gowns/booties/etc
   1. The uncontaminated PPE is shipped to ‘LifeCycle Revive’, in Southern Ontario
   1. The contents are sterilized and processed into pellets, which are then in turn used to create recycling bins, bed pans, etc.
2. Keurig K-Cup Recycling:
   1. Intended for areas with kitchenettes, where Keurig coffee brewing equipment is in use
   1. The pods are collected then sent to EMTERRA for processing.
   1. The pod components are separated – grounds become compost & the plastic is recycled.

If you are interested in becoming a recycling champion within your own department to help support and expand our onsite initiatives, we encourage you to please reach out to housekeeping@tbh.net

We also encourage you to visit the Green Team page on the intranet, as well as the Ecosuperior website to learn about more ways you can get involved and support the local sustainability efforts. 

October 19 2022 is the seventh World Bioethics Day. This year’s theme is “Social Responsibility and Health”. What a wonderful reminder that it is through caring and collaboration that we will create positive changes in our world.

In anticipation of Lakehead University Centre for Health Care Ethics 25th anniversary next year, the Centre invites your participation in a virtual art gallery event. Anyone can join – individuals (e.g., learners, professionals, members of the public), teams, units/departments, and/or health care organizations – to contribute to broadening our collective understanding of how health care ETHICS is the heART of quality
care.

Your thoughtful reflections on health care ethics and quality care from diverse perspectives using ART as a universal medium to share your experiences are welcome. E-contributions will be accepted in the form of poetry, short stories, pictures, digital stories/short videos, music, photos, pictures of sculptures/paintings, digital collages, cultural expressions, etc. An email submission of your original art to the Centre signifies permission for us to elect to post/share your work online for no more than 6 months, but you (the creator) retain all copyrights.

Please send your submissions via email chce@lakeheadu.ca between October 19, 2022 and February 14, 2023.

Please see the poster and flyer below for further details or contact chce@lakeheadu.ca.