A QEII patient enjoys a warm blanket during cancer treatment. Since 2005, QEII Foundation Comfort and Care grants have provided $2.13 million in donor funding for comfort items, like blanket warmers, not otherwise covered by hospital operating budgets.
At the QEII Health Sciences Centre, leading-edge technology and world-class medical talent saves lives every day. The way people experience that care matters. Do they feel uncertain and scared? Or comforted and supported?
Excellent care is not only found in operating rooms. It’s present in the warmth of a soft blanket after chemotherapy. On a comfortable couch in a waiting room. And between the pages of a book that helps guide a family through sudden loss.
Twenty years ago, the QEII Foundation created Comfort and Care grants so that little things that make a big difference could prosper alongside clinical excellence to provide the best care experience for Atlantic Canadians who rely on the QEII.
Since then, the program has channeled an astounding $2.13 million into 835 projects, each one proposed by the people who know patients best – their QEII care providers.
From entertainment items and iPads to educational resources and bedside chairs, Comfort and Care bridges the gap between what traditional hospital budgets can cover and what individuals truly need to feel supported during a care journey, with each dollar flowing from donor generosity.
Benefits beyond clinical care
Donor generosity through Comfort and Care touches nearly every corner of the QEII. The most frequent care areas to benefit are rehabilitation, cardiology, mental health spaces, orthopaedics and cancer treatment areas, but nearly every QEII care area has received at least one grant.
Some items, like blanket warmers, iPads for patient entertainment and education, furniture for waiting rooms and bedside chairs appear on care provider wish lists year after year. But some requests are unique, like cheerful puppy posters, ice makers, or even umbrellas to help keep patients dry on rainy days. Whatever the request, the goal is to bring comfort and make difficult moments just a little bit easier.
Each year, the support behind Comfort and Care grows and care areas thrive as departments receive lasting, sustainable items. In our 2024 year, 59 projects received a combined $171,200 for vital comfort items. Three 2024 stories reveal how heartfelt thought from frontline staff and donor support come together to improve the hospital experience.
Navigating grief and loss
Grief and loss are an unfortunate part of the care journey for many patients and families each day. An unexpected loss, especially, can be a devastating blow to loved ones. Those left behind require extra care and attention.
At the QEII Halifax Infirmary’s Medical/Surgical/Neurological ICU, critical care social worker Kayla Brown often meets families during some of their toughest moments. She navigates cases with complex histories and guides families facing death and dying, grief, and loss, dealing with situations from a child or teen facing the loss of a parent, to families left reeling after a sudden suicide to pregnancy loss and beyond.
She has long relied on the IWK Health Centre to lend grief and loss books to help families at the QEII cope, but lack of supply and tricky timing rarely aligns with the volume and urgent need that Kayla faces each day.
Thanks to the kindness of donors, Kayla’s department received a $1,000 Comfort and Care grant to build a permanent on-site library of grief and loss resources ready on the unit the moment tragedy strikes.
“These resources will affect countless families. In the past 48 hours alone, I have emotionally supported seven families who have had a loved one unexpectedly die,” Kayla says.
“Unexpected death, dying and tragedy is overwhelming to navigate and something as simple as a book can provide immense comfort.”
Keeping cozy and warm
Thanks to donor support, Nova Scotian cancer patients are about to start feeling a little cozier before and after treatment.
At the QEII’s Dickson Building, hundreds of cancer patients and their families access the QEII Cancer Centre each day.
“Some of those patients require intrusive procedures or examinations,” says April Mackinnon, a registered nurse at the QEII Cancer Centre. “And, often times, we experience a chill as the main doors are located just outside the waiting area.”
A $5,715 Comfort and Care grant is bringing a brand-new blanket warmer to the centre, providing patients with a little extra comfort while waiting for treatment or after a difficult procedure.
“Small gestures such as providing some warmth will help comfort and give our patients a feeling of calm as they may be going through their worst days,” she says.
“It will help make our patients more at ease and benefit them psychologically as they go through a cancer journey.”
Chairs for coronary care
You may not think of a chair as something essential to patient care, but the lack of one can mean the difference between a patient staying stuck in bed or getting up and starting to regain independence.
At the QEII’s Halifax Infirmary in the Coronary ICU on 6.4, Jim Barnes, health services manager of the Cardiac Care Unit (CCU) explains how something as simple as comfortable, accessible seating can be helpful for patients recovering from a serious cardiac event.
“The CCU provides patient care for the most acute cardiac conditions in our province. Patients are recovering from Cardiac Cath Lab procedures, post heart attacks, and post cardiac arrest,” he says.
“This is an extremely stressful time in their lives.”
Thanks to donors, the unit received a $5,000 Comfort and Care grant for high-back and low-rise chairs that meet hospital sanitization standards – essential for safe recovery after a cardiac procedure.
As Jim notes, “having such simple things as a reliable chair to sit can mean everything.”
A human touch to health care
On the 20th anniversary of Comfort and Care grants, we’re reminded that health care is about more than clinical care. In each moment, comfort matters. Dignity matters. The experience matters. And each person receiving care at Nova Scotia’s most specialized hospital matters.
Nurses, physicians and healthcare practitioners can see what’s missing in their care areas. Thanks to our donor community, they’re empowered to improve QEII health care with a tangible, human touch.
Comfort and Care has continued to thrive because of the belief that each donation makes a difference and every thoughtfully chosen item, big or small, can brighten someone’s experience at the hospital.
Together, we will keep QEII patient and family comfort top-of-mind for many more milestones to come.
Want to help support QEII Foundation Comfort and Care grants? DOUBLE your donation through our QEII Better Care Gift Catalogue.
