Humber River Hospital Foundation

Meet Dr. Daniela Caprara, one of our OBGYNs at Humber River Hospital: As an OBGYN I work with so many different aspects of women’s health, says Dr. Caprara. That is important to me, and a big reason I entered this field.

A Star is Born! Are you or a loved one having a baby at Humber? Let your love shine and honour your baby by sharing their name on our beautiful wall. It’s the perfect way for adoring parents, starstruck grandparents, aunties and uncles to show their love! https://www.hrhfoundation.ca/a-star-is-born

Keith learned he needed ongoing hemodialysis not long after he lost his job due to COVID. He wanted to find a new job and keep working but his new dialysis schedule was a huge challenge. Then his care team shared there was a NxStage home dialysis machine available.

When Salima started experiencing discomfort in her abdomen, she was referred to Humber Urologist Dr. Peter Kong. Dr. Kong discovered that urine wasn’t leaving her kidney properly and performed the procedure she needed using the da Vinci Surgical Robot.

When you make a donation in honour of someone at Humber River Hospital, they will receive a special recognition pin & personalized card, and your donation will help future patients receive great care. Congratulations to everyone at Humber River Hospital whose exceptional care has inspired donations. To learn more or to make a Gift of Gratitude, visit giftsofgratitude.ca

Many of the people needing Humber’s Apotex Emergency Department arrive cold, hungry and with no way to get home. Our new Patient Comfort Fund will provide our most vulnerable patients with a hot coffee, a warm meal, or a ride home.

This is a story to spread some holiday cheer. About a little light that’s been with us all year. It shone in patients’ rooms, helping staff, nurses, and doctors. It shone in our machines, our tools, and our lockers! When things got tough, and we began a hard endeavour,... Our light said, I’m here with you. We’ll do it together! Don’t know who this light is? We’ll give you a clue. The little light that’s with us all year? It’s you. From all of us at Humber River Hospital Foundation, thank you. The light of your support and donations has brought warmth and joy to so many people this year. We wish you and yours a happy, healthy holiday season!

Meet Dr. Berger, a Hematologist-Oncologist who has worked at Humber River Hospital for 47 years! I am inspired by the change that has happened over the course of my career, he says. Something that has made it hard to retire is that I keep wanting to know what’s going to happen next!"

Check out our guide to holiday shopping and local fundraisers supporting Humber River Hospital Foundation this winter! https://mailchi.mp/hrh/hepwj3m1ed-664686?e=72bbf29b27

What sets Humber River Hospital apart? Here are some of the many ways that we use technology and innovation across our Hospital to provide and model the very best patient-centered care. Lighting New Ways in Healthcare.

When Wendy started having trouble getting in and out of her car, she thought she had pulled a muscle. An X-ray revealed she needed hip surgery, and she was referred to Dr. Rodriguez-Elizalde, an Orthopaedic Surgeon at HRH.

In May 2019, Humber River Hospital Foundation launched Gifts of Gratitude. When you make a donation in honour of someone at Humber River Hospital, they will receive a special recognition pin & personalized card, and your donation will help future patients receive great care. Congratulations to everyone at Humber River Hospital whose exceptional care has inspired donations. To learn more or to make a Gift of Gratitude, visit giftsofgratitude.ca

Waking up in the ICU was the biggest trauma of my life, says Tony. But I realized the gift I had been given. I am forever grateful for the team that saved my life. Weeks later on his birthday, Tony got to present his Gift of Gratitude in person:

#WorldPrematurityDay: Today on our blog, we interviewed Dr. Guy Widrich, a Neonatologist specialized in intensive care for newborns and the Medical Director of the NICU at Humber River Hospital. He told us why he loves working in intensive care, why he is proud of the multi-disciplinary NICU team’s weekly rounds, and how our NICU has grown since he joined in 1997!

Meet Dr. Manal El Sayed, a Paediatrician specialized in Neonatology. In this interview, Dr. El Sayed told us what makes her proud of her team, why electronic health records are an important feature of Humber’s NICU, and why she is inspired by NICU families.

Whether your appointment is happening face to face, over the phone, or through a screen, we are committed to the best possible patient care and safety. Follow these tips to get the most out of your virtual doctor’s appointment:

When 5 year old Ella needed hernia surgery during the pandemic, her mother Lauren was a little nervous. But, Ella and Lauren were immediately put at ease by Alex, the Child Life Specialist who would be there with them on surgery day every step of the way.

Throughout the pandemic, Humber’s Laboratory team has been incredibly hard at work. In addition to their important role in helping our Hospital accurately diagnose patients across all Programs of Care, they have taken on the burden of processing tests for COVID-19, working tirelessly throughout the spring, summer, and fall. When COVID cases in the GTA dipped in the warmer months, testing levels remained high. So we (virtually) sat down with Chantal, one of our amazing Medical Laboratory Technologists, to learn more about the team that has been working non-stop since March 2020.

This week marks Canadian Intensive Care Week AND Respiratory Therapy Week. This year more than ever, we recognize the hard and important work being done by our whole team in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and our Respiratory Therapists throughout the Hospital for their incredible efforts at the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic. Thank you! If you are inspired to make a donation honouring an individual or team this week, visit giftsofgratitude.ca

Lisa was only 33 weeks pregnant when she went into labour early and delivered at her local hospital. Her little twins Charlotte & Xavier needed special care, so they were quickly moved to Humber River Hospital's NICU, which is equipped to care for premature babies.

Five years ago, we opened the doors to North America's most digital hospital with the goal of reinventing patient care with compassion, professionalism, and respect. Thank you to all our volunteers, donors and the Humber community for continuing to be by our side every day. Humber River Hospital is Lighting New Ways in Healthcare and continuing to innovate to provide the best in patient care.

My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago and was treated at Humber, says Dr. Gautam Sudan, a Medical Oncologist at Humber River Hospital. That was life-changing for me as a son and as a physician. Watching my mom go through her cancer journey gave me a deepened perspective for what our patients experience. I want to emphasize the importance of screening. Go for your mammograms, do your breast self-examinations, and if you feel something is off, get it checked. Don’t put it off. Even if it turns out to be nothing, I’d rather you have it checked out. #BreastCancerAwarenessMonth

Meet Dr. Kate Pizzuto, an OBGYN at Humber River Hospital. In this interview, she told us why Humber is one of the best hospitals in the city to have a baby, how the team has prepared for COVID-19, and why she is inspired to give back to her community.

Elisabeta was only in grade 9 when she arrived in Humber's Emergency Psychiatric Unit. She was fast-tracked into Humber’s Child and Adolescent Mental Health Urgent Care Clinic, where she began to open up to her psychiatrist and social worker.

You’re invited! We’re celebrating Humber’s 5th anniversary of opening our doors as North America’s first fully digital hospital on Sunday, October 18. Register to join the livestream Town Hall Q&A the unveiling of our new brand, and more! https://www.hrh.ca/anniversary

Humber River Hospital has opened a new Maternal Fetal Medicine Clinic that will provide care for women experiencing higher-risk pregnancies, and for women who wish to become pregnant who may have underlying health barriers.

3 cool facts about our TD Green Roof at Humber River Hospital: It's 13,192 square meters It's visible from the majority of inpatient rooms (natural views in hospitals can have a positive impact on healing) Planting was designed to LEED Sites standards, so that no drinking water needs to be used to maintain it.

John was overjoyed to regain the use of his hands after years of living with Carpal Tunnel, thanks to surgery with Dr. Olubukunola Ayeni at Humber River Hospital.

Plant a little sunshine! Add $5 to your donation today and a daffodil will be planted in the Healing Gardens on the north side of Humber River Hospital. We are planting up to 1,000 daffodils and can’t wait to watch them bloom this spring! https://hrrhf.akaraisin.com/ui/donate/donations/start

Surgical procedures that decrease patient length of stay and minimize the use of post-operative pain medication are playing a vital role in our ability to ramp up surgical services again. This summer, Humber River Hospital started offering SKiP, a same day knee replacement program that uses a safe and highly effective nerve-block system to block pain sensation.

10:26 am: Surgery is complete and the patient is being prepared to leave the OR. 10:33 am: Patient has entered the Recovery Unit, you will be notified when visitors are permitted. Imagine the peace of mind it gives families to know exactly where their loved one is throughout their surgical journey. Humber River Hospital was the first Surgical Program in Canada to use the STERIS RealView patient tracking system, which tracks patients throughout their surgery in real time. With patient permission, family members anywhere can opt to receive automatic text updates to their smartphones, updating them on their loved one’s progress.

Our AWESOME Silent Auction is now LIVE! We have some truly amazing prizes to be won including a sushi making workshop, signed jerseys, a flight simulation experience, and the opportunity to golf with legendary Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson. Best of all, all proceeds support COVID-19 response at Humber River Hospital. Make sure your mobile device is handy for bidding and click here to get started: https://mobilbid.co/o/67/en/user/magic_links/new

We’re seeing lots of new faces around here and we are honoured to get to share a glimpse inside Humber River Hospital. Many of you might not know that this is a robot. In fact, it’s one of ten self-guided robots here at Humber River Hospital! Our AGVs (which stands for automated guided vehicles) move at the speed of an average person walking. They can call elevators, open doors, and carry things like non-narcotic drugs, food, supplies, and bedding. This means these items are lower-touch and that healthcare teams can spend more time with their patients.

Did you know that you can create your own fundraising page and invite your friends to support the cause closest to your heart at Humber River Hospital? Lately, we have been seeing a lot of Personal Fundraising Pages raising money for COVID-19, but many people use these pages to support other programs that have touched their lives, especially as hospital services continue to open up. To get started on your own Personal Fundraising Page visit hrhfoundation.ca/pfp Thank you everyone for your support during this time!

Meet OBGYN Dr. Lynn Sterling. She told us about Humber’s innovative one-stop IUD Clinic, how her team has used technology to keep families connected during the pandemic, and why she is inspired to work with women who need medical care during menopause.

Did you know that Humber River Hospital was designed with pandemic and hazmat situations in mind? Using key learnings from Toronto’s SARS epidemic, designers of the new Hospital included these important Infection Control features in the plans for the building:

Women in Kindness (WINK) is a group of women working together to support Humber River Hospital. Members join WINK through an entry donation and vote together on where their collective funds will be used. To be part of the next round visit hrhfoundation.ca/WINK

In September, Rocco was working in the backyard when he felt a pain in his chest. It was a burning sensation, remembers Rocco. I thought it was heartburn, but a few hours later it still hadn’t gone away.

Audrey passed away last August at 106 years old. Her great joys in life were family, friends, and travel, and she had chosen to honour Humber River Hospital Foundation in her Will. She loved to help people," says her grandson Mark. "She would love to know that she is helping people heal and enjoy life, because that’s what she was all about. That makes me happy.

On May 30th, Rebecca was at home reading a book when she thought she felt her water break. When she realized it was blood, they called an ambulance, which took her to Humber River Hospital.

After over three months on ventilators in our #ICU, our two longest admitted #COVID19 patients, Bruno and Mario, are leaving us and we could not be happier! ...Seeing you both walk out of the hospital after a relentless battle is why our staff get up every day to provide exceptional care. Today is a day for us to celebrate at HRH! #InThisTogether See more

Our Hospital has been battling the pandemic for months now, and your response has been tremendous! Thanks to our donors, HRH Foundation has raised over $1.4 million for COVID-19 response and over 433,000 pieces of personal protective equipment so far:

After three months, The Humber Frontline Support Fund is still putting smiles on our frontline teams faces! Thank you to everyone who has donated. This week, your donations meant that hot meals were distributed to staff across departments including the Emergency Department, the Intensive Care Unit, and the Maternal and Child Program, and snack-filled gift bags, essential toiletry kits, and Tim Horton’s gift cards were handed out across all three sites. Our goal for the Humber... Frontline Support Fund is to alleviate the stress felt by our healthcare teams by paying for things like meals, travel, and other care items so that they can continue to provide frontline care. A special thanks to Tarek Elgammal and Masrawy Kitchen, Tony Sampogna and Paul Calcagno, Rob Rathke and his generous donors, Global Medic, and the Humber River Hospital Wilson Site Tim Hortons for helping us make this week’s surprises a reality. @ Humber River Hospital See more

Humber has shown us they really understand how important it is for our family to be connected with our dad, says Gisella, whose father Bruno is still recovering at Humber River Hospital after contracting COVID-19 in March.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in Toronto, we have been blown away by the generosity and creativity demonstrated by our community as you rallied around our frontline workers. Whether you donated, shared our social posts, or created your own fundraisers for us, thank you. These are some of the amazing fundraisers that are helping us in the fight against the coronavirus:

Carl and Thelma made the decision together to leave Humber in their Will, making them part of our Aspen Grove Society. When Thelma passed away from cancer, Carl thought about what she would have liked and decided to help build the Healing Gardens at the North side of the building. Today, that garden runs the whole length of the Hospital. I like to imagine that Thelma is here, greeting the patients, says Carl. And when a family member needs to step outside for a breath of fresh air or to say a prayer, Thelma is watching over them.

Joanna was frightened when she contracted COVID-19 in April, but she was blown away by the compassionate care she received at HRH. I wouldn’t wish COVID on anyone, but my experience at Humber has reaffirmed my faith in our frontline workers, she says.

Wishing you and your families, near and far, a very happy and safe Father’s Day.

The Humber Frontline Support Fund is celebrating almost three months of putting smiles on our frontline team's faces! This week, your donations meant that hot meals were distributed to staff from all three sites, our teams at Wilson received therapeutic acupressure balls and the staff at the Church and Finch RCCs enjoyed a free lunch as part of a month-long initiative! Our goal for the Humber Frontline Support Fund is to alleviate the stress felt by our healthcare teams by paying for things like meals, travel, and other care items so that they can continue to provide frontline care. A special thanks to Mandarin Restaurants, Goodmark and Dr. Cohen's acuProducts for turning this week’s surprises into a reality.

Meet Dr. Jonathan Mandel, Radiologist & Chief of Medical Imaging at Humber River Hospital. In his interview, Dr. Mandel told us why he is proud of Humber’s Medical Imaging Program, how MRI technology sets Humber apart, and why he loves building online games with his son.

The Humber Frontline Support Fund had another successful week! Your donations meant that our Emergency Department team at Wilson were treated to a hot, catered lunch, and the teams at the Church and Finch RCCs enjoyed a pizza lunch! Thank you! . Our goal for the Humber Frontline Support Fund is to alleviate the stress felt by our healthcare teams by paying for things like meals, travel, and other care items so that they can continue to provide frontline care. A special thanks to SKYGRiD Construction Inc., and Corriere Canadese for turning this week’s surprises into a reality. @ Humber River Hospital

We live in a society where there are structural barriers such as systemic racism, and these barriers are invariably embedded in how institutions run including in healthcare. Ultimately, we want anyone who walks into our Hospital as staff, physician, volunteer, patient or family member to feel a sense of belonging. Employees should all feel they are being given fair opportunities, and patients and families should all feel they are receiving equitable healthcare services. M...eet Umwali Sauter, the Manager of Equity and Inclusion at Humber River Hospital. Her job is to identify equity and inclusion barriers at Humber, and then engage the staff, physicians, and volunteers on strategies to close the gaps. In this interview, Umwali explains why racism is a public health issue, how COVID-19 has amplified disparities in vulnerable communities, and why she’s inspired to leave this world better than she found it. See more

Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we have raised $233,000 in three short weeks to purchase and operate three brand new COVID-19 rapid testing machines for Humber River Hospital! Thank you to Upper Crust for launching this amazing gift match and to our generous donors like IC Savings for answering the call.

You may have noticed a little extra burst of summer in the Piazza Team Revolution ! We encourage staff, physicians, and volunteers to take a moment outside to enjoy Humber’s beautiful, new flower installation courtesy of Feel Good Flowers, Jackie O Events, and Hullmark. Feel Good Flowers works with local floral artists to create unique large-scale flower installations outside Toronto hospitals like ours, Their mission is to show appreciation for frontline hospital workers who are fighting the ongoing pandemic. Humber’s flower installation was generously donated by the Hull Family, who have been supporting our Hospital for decades. We at the Foundation are so grateful to everyone involved, and of course to our healthcare team who inspired this lovely gesture.

We will always remember Dr. Rueben Devlin, the previous CEO of Humber River Hospital, with great fondness. Our team has so much admiration for the support and compassion Dr. Devlin had for our community, not only as a leader in healthcare, but also in philanthropy. His legacy will not be forgotten. https://www.hrh.ca/2020/06/08/drruebendevlin/

We were so moved by this drawing that Marissa made of a virtual hug for her dad, Anaesthesiologist Dr. Devin Singh, when he moved out temporarily during COVID-19. Marissa, her mom Alison, and newborn baby Myles have been raising money for Humber River Hospital on their personal fundraising page (you can create your own at https://hrhfoundation.ca/pfp). Thank you so much to the whole family for helping Toronto in this fight! #VirtualHug

Our patients can’t receive visitors right now, so we have been using iPads at the RCCs to help them stay connected with their families through video chat. It has been so great to hear their laughter and bits and pieces of their conversations. They’re talking to their families about the future. About how much they love them. That connection goes a long way in providing both sides with comfort and reassurance. We’ve loaded new interfaces onto the iPads so we can reach families... with Android phones as well, and we work with each family’s schedules to reach them at the best times. We could not do this without our Patient Family Liaisons they have been amazing. - Denise Scott, Interim Manager, RCC Church Humber River Hospital Foundation would like to thank the members of the YPO Toronto Chapter for donating these iPads for use at both the Finch and Church Reactivation Care Centres. In addition to being used to keep families connected, our Recreation Therapists have also been using them to share music, which our patients have loved so far.

The aspen grove on the side of our building symbolizes the shared belief in a unity connecting us all. Each tree stands as an individual, and is connected to the whole through shared roots. We stand together against racism. Black lives matter. If you are participating in public advocacy activities, please stay safe and wear a mask, practice physical distancing if possible, and visit covid19toronto.ca to access the self-assessment tool as well as information on local assessment centres.

This week, thanks to your donations to our Humber Frontline Support Fund, 1,000 Tim Hortons gift cards were handed out to staff at our Wilson Site, the RCC weekend staff were treated to a catered lunch, warm meals were provided for our General Surgery and Endoscopy Clinic teams, and our Labour and Delivery team received handmade hair scrunchies. Thank you! Our goal for the Humber Frontline Support Fund is to alleviate the stress felt by our healthcare teams by paying for things like meals, travel, and other care items so that they can continue to provide frontline care. A special thanks to Tim Hortons, Kitchen24, Diplock Group of Companies, and Chelsea King Inc. for helping turn these surprises into a reality.

Over the past few weeks we have introduced you to some of the courageous people on Humber’s frontline, like Denis, Sherry, and Sara. Healthcare workers in Canada are working long shifts in stressful environments where the risk of contracting COVID-19 is real. That’s why Humber River Hospital Foundation is so proud and grateful to be part of @the_frontline_fund, which is helping to purchase personal protective equipment, mental health counselling, accommodation, and food for healthcare workers that need to self-isolate. Learn more at FrontlineFund.ca @ Humber River Hospital

Good morning everyone! Thank you to our Humber Frontline Support Fund donors for allowing us to continue to surprise our frontline! This week, your support meant that staff at both Reactivation Care Centres were treated to authentic Sicilian arancini (rice balls), over 2000 bags of popcorn were given out across our Wilson site, and staff at RCC Finch were treated to lunch. More to come! Our goal for the Humber Frontline Support Fund is to alleviate the stress felt by our healthcare teams by paying for things like meals, travel, and other care items so that they can continue to provide frontline care. A special thanks to LivBon Arancini, Fundraising Solutions, and the Monaco Family for helping to make this week’s surprises possible.

We love this shot of some of our amazing rehabilitation team, pre-COVID You may already know that Doctors Day and Nursing Week happen in May, but May is also when Canadians celebrate National Physiotherapy Month, Speech and Hearing Month, and more! We are so proud of the care shown by our Allied Health Professionals at Humber River Hospital. If your family has received above and beyond care from an individual or team at Humber, you can make their day better with a donation in their honour at giftsofgratitude.ca

An x-ray can give us a snapshot of someone’s state of health, including their heart and lungs. Before COVID, we used our mobile x-ray units for intubated patients in the ICU or anyone who was too unwell to come downstairs to the department. Now, we are using the mobile units much more often. It’s harder for our patients right now because they don’t have their families with them, and I have always made the effort to have a conversation taking that extra minute to talk with them. That’s what I love about being an MRT our job is a combination of compassionate patient care using advanced technology, and getting the images we need while keeping someone as comfortable as possible. Even in these unfortunate times, I am grateful to be in a line of work that I love so much. - Sara Zarazun, Medical Radiation Technologist, X-Ray

May 1st, 2020 marked the 1 year anniversary of our Gifts of Gratitude Program. In just 365 days, 480 individuals and teams inspired donations from donors who wanted another way to express exactly how thankful they were for the above and beyond care they received at Humber. That is outstanding! We have received Gifts of Gratitude in honour of people from every corner of the Hospital. Congratulations to Humber’s amazing staff, physicians, and volunteers, and to the following f...ive teams, who have received the most cumulative pins: Surgery, Cancer Care, Emergency Department, Intensive Care Unit, and Level 7 East! On behalf of Humber River Hospital Foundation, thank you for everything you are doing for our community. You inspire gratitude every day, but especially during this time when you are working hard to be there for us all. Learn more at giftsofgratitude.ca

An Etobicoke family is asking for beer and wine empties to support our COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund -- and their bottle drive ends this Sunday!

Our Humber Frontline Support Fund donors (both monetary and in-kind) continue to put a smile on everyone’s face at Humber River Hospital! This week, your support meant that cakes were delivered to our nurses on every team across the Hospital in honour of National Nursing Week! Almost 9,000 articles of clothing and footwear were gifted so that our staff would have clean, separate outfits to travel to and from work in, our Intensive Care Unit and Environmental Services teams we...re both treated to hot lunches, and 130 care packs were delivered to our ICU nurses. Staff, don’t worry if we haven’t reached your program yet, we promise more special surprises to come. Our goal for the Humber Frontline Support Fund is to alleviate the stress felt by our healthcare teams by paying for things like meals, travel, and other care items so that they can continue to provide frontline care. A special thanks to Roots Canada, Cultures & the HRH Medical Imaging Department, BarBurrito, and The Pampered Chef for valuing our frontline staff and helping to make this week’s surprises possible.

The pandemic has meant that we are constantly aware of our surroundings, we’re taking extra precautions, and working with our masks and face shields on. Many conditions are first diagnosed through CT scans, and lately we are performing a lot of chest CT scans looking for symptoms of COVID-19, like embolisms or signs of pneumonia. As Medical Radiation Technologists we work with patients and other healthcare teams from all over the Hospital, including inpatients, outpatients, and patients who come in through Emergency. It has been difficult, but at the end of every shift I am grateful for my team and for knowing that we have helped a lot of people. - Sherry Sun, Medical Radiation Technologist, CT & Interventional Radiology