Patricia Lang
Chair, Board of Directors
February 2025
I would like to begin my first report of 2025 by expressing gratitude to our incredible staff, professional staff, volunteers and learners for their hard work over the holidays. The holiday season is typically a very busy time for our Emergency Department and with the influx of respiratory illnesses, these past couple of months were no exception to previous years. Thank you for your dedication to providing the highest quality care to the people of Northwestern Ontario.
As mentioned, the Hospital has seen an increase of respiratory illnesses within our Inpatient Clinical Units and respiratory-related visits to our Emergency Department. As part of our commitment to keeping everyone safe, there are masking protocols in certain areas of our facilities. Masking is required by all staff, professional staff, learners, volunteers, and Essential Care Partners/Care Partners (ECPs/CPs) when entering a patient room in all Inpatient Clinical Units and when in the Emergency Department. Masks are available at all of our public entrances on the sanitizing stands.
Another key component to reducing the spread of illness is hand hygiene. Washing your hands with soap and water or by using hand sanitizer helps reduce the spread of disease. All patients, visitors, staff and volunteers are asked to wash their hands when entering the Hospital, or make use of the hand sanitizer dispensers available throughout the facility. We certainly appreciate your cooperation with masking and proper hand hygiene as together, both reduce the risk of spreading illness and help us keep the community safe.
The holiday season was also marked by the kindness and generosity of staff. Throughout December, departments came together to provide donations for those in need in our Hospital and community. Staff from Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre’s Informatics Team raised over $600 for our Hospital’s Patient Clothing Cupboard. The money will be used by our volunteers to purchase new socks and underwear for patients in need. The Emergency Department raised $3,700 for the Children’s Aid Society’s Holiday Hamper Program with additional cash donations to the Dew Drop Inn and the Regional Food Distribution Association. The Renal Food Cupboard, which is managed and maintained by members of the North West Regional Renal Program at our Hospital, collects kidney-friendly food items for renal patients throughout the year. This team continued their annual Christmas food drive campaign to support that collection, which was organized by the Health Care and EMS Prayer Chain and helped by donations from Renal Program staff. The willingness of staff, professional staff, learners and volunteers to contribute and support these initiatives has a significant impact on some of our most vulnerable patients, who rely on the food and clothing cupboards daily. A special thank you goes out to those who coordinated these collection drives, as their hard work and dedication in organizing such efforts not only make a difference in the lives of our patients but also inspire others to give.
December brought with it investments from the Ontario government to support sustainability and improve access to care. More than $14 million in funding was announced to support staffing and operations at our Hospital to address financial pressures while meeting the unique needs of the region’s population. This is an additional investment to the organization’s base funding, supporting both immediate needs and long-term improvements. The Province is also providing funds to build a new, state-of-the-art emergency mental health and addictions assessment and observation area, ensuring the Hospital is better equipped to deliver responsive and comprehensive care to those in crisis. Once opened, the new mental health area will include a new space designed to provide care in a safe and private setting for patients and their families, ensuring individuals in crisis have access to critical services quickly and close to home.
In addition, the month of January ended with a significant funding announcement from the Ontario government that will enable us to enhance cardiovascular surgery services at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. The $93 million for infrastructure will allow us to establish a Cardiovascular Surgery Program. The overall project aims to revolutionize the landscape of cardiovascular care within our Hospital and deliver transformative impacts on the health and well-being of individuals throughout Northwestern Ontario. The addition of these critical services will hold immense significance, offering life-saving cardiovascular interventions that will improve patient outcomes and reduce the need for long-distance travel to other hospitals in our Province. The project will facilitate lasting enhancements in the quality of care, ensuring a better future for healthcare in our region.
Thank you to all those who purchased tickets for the Thunder Bay Regional Health Science Foundation’s 50/50 lottery, resulting in December’s record-breaking grand prize of $6,436,355. Proceeds from the 50/50 have funded many projects at our Hospital including an MRI retrofit, PET/CT scanner, renovations in the Emergency Department and Cancer Centre, and many other initiatives that improve closer-to-home care for everyone in our community. This past year the Foundation through your donations contributed $6.6 million to our Hospital – we are incredibly grateful. I would also like to recognize the generosity of The Hearts at Home Campaign and the funding raised for the Cardiovascular Surgery Project that will help support the project. The Foundation’s work makes a huge impact on health care for residents in Northwestern Ontario and supports the Hospital’s vision of exceptional care for every patient, every time.
Patricia Lang
Chair, TBRHSC Board of Directors
