Pictured: The QEII’s Sunshine Room offers a calming space for cancer patients to access free services
A soft place to land. That’s what the QEII’s Sunshine Room was for patients during their cancer care journey.
For nearly two decades, the donor-supported and volunteer-led Sunshine Room offered patients a calming, therapeutic space to access services like wig fitting and massage therapy, connect with cancer support networks, and recharge from the stress of treatments.
But when the world shut down in 2020 due to COVID-19, so did the Sunshine Room. Its home on the 11th floor of the QEII’s Victoria Building was reclaimed for much-needed critical treatment space.
“There has been a gap since 2020 when the room closed,” shares Erin Fair, volunteer services coordinator for Cancer Care and Palliative Care at the QEII. “We had a dream that someday the Sunshine Room would return, and patients would feel that holistic support again.”
That dream is coming true this spring when the Sunshine Room reopens its doors to hundreds of patients who will benefit from its comforting walls. And it’s all possible because of donor support.
Donations previously earmarked for the Sunshine Room have helped pay for renovations and preparations, such as construction, flooring, lighting, painting, and a kitchenette.
Reopening on the first floor of the QEII’s Centennial Building, the Sunshine Room will be just far enough from clinical space to be a reprieve from the stress and reminders of treatment.
The new space is easy to access, larger and brighter, and offers a better layout for services. Free services like massage therapy, Reiki, touch therapy, reflexology, hair styling, and wig fitting will be available on a drop-in basis, with group programs offered in the common space.
“Many of our previous Sunshine Room volunteers have been just waiting to return. Their involvement even informed how we designed the new space,” says Erin.
“For instance, ensuring the chair for hair services has privacy. It can be very emotional for a patient to have their head shaved or be fitted for a wig. A bit of privacy goes a long way to offer decency and some comfort.”
Now, the team is in the final stretch of preparing the new space.
“When the doors open this spring, the Sunshine Room will be ready to wrap its arms around patients by doing the best we can with what we have,” says Erin.
There are ongoing costs to offer services, such as the hair and wig program. Adding furnishings for comfortable seating, technology for music and program showings, and vital kitchen appliances to provide refreshments are also ongoing needs.
“We know we can continue to enhance the space and the experience for patients,” Erin says. “Sometimes it’s the small things that have the biggest impact. We are just so grateful to have a new place to call home.”
To learn more or donate to help bring more resources to the Sunshine Room, visit QE2Foundation.ca/SunshineRoom
