Priorities
Great Care. Close to Home.
The Foundation works with healthcare leadership to identify priority projects for our community to support. Below we have highlighted some of our current projects in acute, long-term care and community. The list represents a snapshot in time given that needs are continually being identified. While we aim to keep the priority list up-to-date, we also extend the invitation to reach out for additional information or to discuss projects within specific departments or sites that are of interest.
Through the Comox Valley Healthcare Foundation, we have the opportunity, via giving, to bolster local healthcare so that our loved ones receive exceptional support at every stage of their lives. Together, we have the capacity to influence change and make a difference. We can bring new medical equipment and services to our hospital. We can help seniors thrive and be re-abled after a setback from an injury or surgery. We can find new ways for people to thrive at home for as long as possible. We can enhance long-term care. We can find ways to bring joy and comfort to the elderly. We can do remarkable things for local healthcare together!
For more on how your giving can help you and your loved ones live well, please reach out to the Foundation office at 250-331-5957. We look forward to working with you!
Acute Care Priorities for the Hospital
$103,000
Where:
Comox Valley Hospital
Need:
The ultrasound is used in the Operating Room to aid anesthesiologists in identifying cardiac, pulmonary, and gastric risk factors before and during surgery. The use of the ultrasound in the perioperative period is essential to provide safe and complete care to patients.
$27,600 for 2
Where:
Comox Valley Hospital
Need:
Orthopedic Cameras are used to display the image of the joint on a video monitor, allowing the surgeon to carefully examine, for example, throughout the knee. Two cameras required.
$28,300
Where:
Comox Valley Hospital
Need:
At present, hospital staff are limited with the number of work stations in decontamination. Healthcare standards state that there is a limited amount of time to process surgical equipment. This work station will prevent delays and back logs and ensure equipment is processed immediately. The hospital Operating Rooms expanded in September 2023. This work station is needed to process equipment as soon as it is used and to ensure resources are used efficiently and to the highest standards of safety.
$12,600
Where:
Comox Valley Hospital
Need:
This rack is required for the Comox Valley Hospital (CVH) Medical Device Reprocessing Department (MDRD) Washer. Currently, the washer is used to process Laparoscopic Equipment. CVH only has one rack, and with the Operating Room expansion last September, Surgical Services will be doing more Laparoscopic Surgery. The MIS Rack will enable the processing of surgical equipment in a timelier fashion.
$19,550
Where:
Comox Valley Hospital
Need:
The Neoprobe is used in breast, prostate, head and neck surgeries that require sentinel node dissection. It is a Bluetooth neoprobe, differing from our regular neoprobe that has a defunct cord that prevents its use at the present time. The neoprobe contains a scintillation counter for operative detection of radionuclide (the patient is injected with this prior to surgery) to detect the sentinel node during axillary dissection.
$13,644
Where:
Comox Valley Hospital
Need:
The Vein Finder is used to assist staff in the medical-surgical units (3A/B/C/D and 4 A/B) who are having difficulty starting an intravenous line (IV). Supporting patients whose veins are challenging to locate, this device offers the benefit of less pokes and therefore more comfort and reduced stress.
$97,000
Where:
Comox Valley Hospital
Need:
The Tomosynthesis or 3D Mammogram is a new type of imaging test that combines multiple breast x-rays to create a three-dimensional picture of the breast for breast cancer screening.
$20,000
Where:
Comox Valley Hospital
Need:
Code Blue is a hospital emergency code used to describe the critical status of a patient, including cardiac arrest, respiratory issues, or another advanced medical emergencies. When a Code Blue is called, a team of healthcare workers respond in a rapid, yet organized manner. Improvements in response times during cardiac arrest increase survival rates and fewer long-term complications.
According to research, it is estimated that one life would be saved for each active mock Code Blue practiced per 100 beds per year. It is essential our staff have access to the Resusci Anne torso manikin and to training to improve code blue response and outcomes for survival rate when Comox Valley residents experience in-hospital cardiopulmonary arrest.
Long-Term Care Priorities
$50,000
Where:
Providence Living at The Views
Need:
St. Joseph’s Hospital was built in the early 1900s and served as our community’s hospital for over a century. Today, the site is home to Providence Living at The Views, formerly called The Views at St. Joseph’s, a long-term care home owned and operated by Providence Living. The physical building reflects the standards of the day in which it was built, providing shared accommodations for as many as four people to one room.
Providence Living and its visionary leaders have taken hold of the opportunity to rebuild The Views and, together with Island Health, government, UBC, St. Paul’s Foundation (the Vancouver-based philanthropic partner of Providence Living) and Comox Valley Healthcare Foundation are bringing a groundbreaking new model for long-term care to our community. What is emerging will positively influence seniors’ care across British Columbia and beyond.
The vision embraces the concept of the home in which residents will be supported to engage in independent and meaningful lives to the full extent of their ability. They will have freedom of movement and access to nature while living in a vibrant community with amenities such as a bistro, gardens, general store and the joy of children nearby at the on-site daycare. The care model will provide opportunities for spontaneity, community engagement and intergenerational connection.
The new building is expected to welcome its first residents in 2024 and will be home to 156 people whose accommodations will be organized into small, self-contained households of 12 private suites. As a not-for-profit site, funds will be used to enhance resident comfort and care.
$26,000
Where:
Providence Living at the Views
Need:
The OMI Interactive Sensory Suite has many benefits for users. This award-winning projection technology is an amazing tool for adults, including those with special needs or dementia. The technology encourages active participation and keeps users engaged. Users interact with many lively applications, being transported on a variety of dynamic, engaging, stimulating, and broadening journeys of discovery, and earning many cognitive, emotional, physical, and social rewards. Users have reported greater socialization and willingness to communicate, obvious enjoyment and shared laughter, and more flexibility and upper body movement.
$24,150
Where:
Glacier View Lodge
Need:
Restorative Care equipment is required to support residents at Glacier View Lodge. Required equipment includes five wheelchairs, five mattresses and 10 slings. The Restorative Care Program supports all residents who live at the Lodge. This equipment will provide comfort and mobility to residents, boosting spirits and enabling happier lives in the care home.
$10,500
Where:
Glacier View Lodge
Need:
Music programs which often incorporate music therapy make use of music interventions to accomplish individualized care goals for residents. The use of music to achieve specific therapeutic goals such as managing stress; reducing anxiety; alleviating pain; enhancing memory; improving communication; expressing feelings and promoting physical rehabilitation.
Research strongly supports the power of music and movement to provide meaningful stimulation for those living with dementia. The therapeutic use of music combats loneliness, boredom and isolation, and addresses grief and feelings of abandonment. Music Therapy provides a safe platform for people to feel connected and experience the joy and beauty of music. The overarching goal of a Music Therapist in long-term care settings is to address psychosocial and emotional wellbeing. Music Therapy focuses on residents’ strengths and is a valuable resource to engage in at end of life.
$10,500
Where:
Cumberland Lodge
Need:
Music programs which often incorporate music therapy make use of music interventions to accomplish individualized care goals for residents. The use of music to achieve specific therapeutic goals such as managing stress; reducing anxiety; alleviating pain; enhancing memory; improving communication; expressing feelings and promoting physical rehabilitation.
Research strongly supports the power of music and movement to provide meaningful stimulation for those living with dementia. The therapeutic use of music combats loneliness, boredom and isolation, and addresses grief and feelings of abandonment. Music Therapy provides a safe platform for people to feel connected and experience the joy and beauty of music. The overarching goal of a Music Therapist in long-term care settings is to address psychosocial and emotional wellbeing. Music Therapy focuses on residents’ strengths and is a valuable resource to engage in at end of life.
$10,000
Where:
Cumberland Lodge
Need:
Some residents living at Cumberland Lodge do not have the funds to buy necessities such as razors, shampoo, socks, and clothing. Some residents have been pre-deceased by loved ones and do not have family. Holiday gatherings with visits and presents for neighbouring residents can make these times of the year even more difficult. This Fund will enable staff to ensure residents have those little necessities from a bottle of shampoo, to cozy socks and small gifts at special times of the year that ensure everyone in the home feels joy and the love of their community.
Community Healthcare Priorities
*Needs assessment in progress, check back soon for further priorities.
$25,000
Need:
We are building this fund to advance research and innovation related to seniors’ health and wellness and to support other initiatives aimed at best serving our growing senior population and expanding the care required.
$25,000
Where:
Community Health Services, Island Health
Need:
The Safe Housing Fund is a new fund for Community Healthcare Services in support of vulnerable people in our community, such as the elderly, individuals with mobility limitations, or people with mental health challenges, who require healthcare support in their homes. Creating care plans for these individuals requires a home visit by a healthcare worker and sometimes staff discover a house is no longer safe for a patient to live in. This fund will help with deep cleaning, accessibility renovations, or repairs that are necessary to re-establish a safe home for the patient so they can receive care in the comfort of their own home. This fund will also provide temporary accommodation when a patient is ready for discharge from the hospital but cannot return home because modification is in process, or because they live on one of the surrounding Islands or in another remote location and need to remain close to the hospital for out-patient care. Donations to this fund provide a huge sense of relief for patients in knowing they have help with house modifications, a temporary place to stay, and eventually the comfort of their own home. The fund also provides peace-of-mind for healthcare workers who provide at-home care and can reduce the duration of hospital stays, freeing up hospital resources.
$17,000
Where:
Community Health Services, Island Health
Need:
A Bladder Scanner provides safe and effective patient and family comfort during a very vulnerable time of life. It is an accurate, non-invasive tool that aids healthcare workers with delivery of care to relieve distressing bladder symptoms and increasing patient comfort during palliative care.