RMH Auxiliary gift helps keep patients safe during surgery

The Ross Memorial Hospital Auxiliary’s mission is to enhance patient care and to raise funds for the RMH Foundation. At its Annual General Meeting on June 20th, it achieved both priorities.

Hospital volunteers who received long service pins were given the honour of presenting the Auxiliary’s contribution for 2015/16 — a cheque for $150,000 — to the Foundation’s Board Chair Tim Shauf and Executive Director Erin Coons.

The funds complete the Auxiliary’s pledge to help the Hospital purchase new anaesthesia machines for the OR. The anaesthesia machine is the most important piece of safety technology in the OR, as it monitors drug delivery and the patient’s vital signs, registering the smallest changes in a patient’s status, with alarms that alert the team to potential danger.

The Auxiliary was also able to help the Hospital purchase a patient lift for the Diagnostic Imaging department.

“We join the Auxiliary because we want to help the Hospital. It’s wonderful to be able to look at pieces of patient care equipment and technology in the Hospital and know that we did that,” said Ward Levine, Auxiliary President. “Patients are receiving better and safer care because of the service we provide and the funds we raise. That means a lot.”

“The Auxiliary is the Foundations most valued partner here at the Ross,” said Tim Shauf, Chair of the Foundation Board of Directors. “Dollar by dollar with every coffee and raffle ticket and get well card they sell, volunteers help us bridge the gap between the hospital’s equipment needs and its capital budget. Their success proves that every gift makes an impact. Everyone can play a role in patient care.”