Hello, Boozhou, Bonjour.

I wanted to touch base quickly with all of you as we approach the summer months.

After two years and three months of dealing with a global pandemic, I know many of you are tired physically, mentally and emotionally. So, I truly hope you can take advantage of the weather, our amazing outdoors and reconnect with friends and family to help rejuvenate yourselves.

As you know, many people in the communities we serve are struggling these days for various reasons beyond our control. However, what is within our control is how we care for people when they come into our Hospital and how we can make sure our Hospital is a caring environment.  As I am sure most of you are aware, we have recently seen an increase in abusive and even violent behaviour within our walls. I need to be clear that this is completely and utterly unacceptable. I have directed our senior leadership team to increase the amount of security we have on site. In addition, I have reached out to local police to discuss an increased presence and better partnerships to improve protocols when they bring in patients in distress. Finally, in a rare move, I made a direct plea to the communities we serve through our social media platforms to treat our staff with respect and to tell people that violence in any form would not be tolerated. That post was shared more than 1,000 times and was picked up by media – a true testament to the broad support that you all have in the community. I know sometimes it may not feel like it, but please do know the public is supportive of the work you do and the respect you deserve. 

As we look ahead to brighter days, we officially launched our Strategic Plan 2026 both internally and within our community. A major pillar and area of priority focus is Staff Experience — developing our culture and engaging our people. Our goal is to build an environment that supports our people while contributing to our vision of Exceptional Care for every patient every time. They are directly connected, and it is foundational to our plan that we work together to create a working environment that is free from violence as discussed above…while supporting learning, development, equity, innovation, and a place where we all want to work, grow and thrive.

While challenging, it has been a busy and productive year. As we have closed out 2021/22 – we have so much to be proud of. We are thrilled there are new faces around TBRHSC as we have attracted an unprecedented number of new hires over the past year. Please join me in welcoming our newcomers and helping them feel like a part of the team.

Whether it’s on holidays or simply when you’re off work, please enjoy the summer and focus on recharging your bodies, minds and spirits. Lastly, as always, thank you again for everything you do and have done for the people we serve.

As always, I welcome comments on this blog or any other matter. You can reach me at: rhonda.ellacott@tbh.net.