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An update on the Medicine Hat Health Foundation by dynamic Executive Director Executive Director Heather Bach was our guest speaker today. She presented interesting and up-to-date information about the Medicine Hat Health Foundation. Heather started her presentation by thanking the Rotary Club of Medicine Hat for the $12,000 given to the Foundation, by the Club, for local healthcare, over the past 25 years. A bit of interesting history shared by Heather, is that the Medicine Hat General hospital was built by volunteers in 1889 – and was the first hospital west of Winnipeg. Our Regional Hospital was built in 1958, with expansions in 1986 and 2017. The Medicine Hat Foundation was founded in 1996. A Board of 13 Trustees heads up the Foundation, which is a registered charitable organization that raises funds to support, improve and equip local healthcare providers and facilities. The Core Funds of the Foundation are: Men’s Health; Women’s Health; Children’s Health, Senior’s Health, Addictions & Mental Health; and Greatest needs. All donations received remain in the community. Guiding the operation and services of the Foundation are five key values: Community, Transparency, Compassion, Integrity and Philanthropy. ED Heather has four coordinators heading up: Major Gifts; Program/Volunteer; Donor Relations; and Strategic Giving. Evidence of the difference made by the Health Foundation in Medicine Hat is that since its establishment in June 1996, the Foundation has invested over $20.1 million in local health care. Most readers will have noticed or even popped into the Gift Shop on the ground level of our Regional Hospital. This shop, operated by volunteers, raised a staggering $11,409.89 over the past 12 months. In addition to putting in time at the Gift Shop, there are many ways in which one can volunteer for the Health Foundation, including newspaper delivery to inpatient units, taking the shop’s gift cart around the hospital to bed bound patients and staff; assisting in the Foundation’s office and assisting with various campaigns. Heather made special mention of the specialized space in the hospital that the Foundation has set up for children, where they can access support in moments of crisis. This paediatric mental health room was officially opened in April 2023. The Foundation has been able to purchase vital equipment over the past year, including vaccine refrigerators, a Fabian ventilator for Neonatal Intensive care unit, MRI-safe monitoring equipment, therapeutic burn sleeves, Sonosite Ultrasound for the high-risk maternal clinic, and a fluid management system for surgical suites. Heather ended her presentation with a list of the Foundation’s greatest current needs. These include funds for: the expansion and renovation of the gift shop, a Hana surgical bed, and special beds for the mental health unit. Thank you, Heather, for the significant impact you, your staff, Board and volunteers are making in the health sector of Medicine Hat. May the Foundation continue to have all the community support needed – “Together, We Can”!
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