Hospital News
A contract has been signed between the hospital and the Sault College Nursing program to have their students complete their 4th year placements in our facility. Such programs are considered a valuable recruitment tool to bring people to our hospital who might now have considered nursing here otherwise. The first student will begin in January and she has already agreed to stay on full time after her placement! This is great news for our nursing team who have been filling in extra shifts during recent shortages and could use some relief soon. Other programs are in various stages of completion to proactively continue to recruit nurses in a competitive market as the world wide staffing shortage continues to grow.
North Shore Med Express Transit Approved
Manitouwadge General Hospital is pleased to learn that so far one of the five
proposals recently submitted by his team has been approved for funding. The North West Local
Health Integration Network has announced that a proposal submitted by Manitouwadge General
Hospital to establish a transit service on highway 17 and one on highway 11 has been approved
for fbnding under the provincial Aging at Home initiatives.
The plan calls for a transit vehicle to be stationed in Manitouwadge and one in
Longlac/Geraldton to go along highways 17 and 11 to Thunder Bay every second day. Each
vehicle will be able to accommodate 1-2 wheelchair passengers and 5-6 regular passengers. A
booking coordinator will be hired to take referrals from physicians and have those appointments
with specialists coordinated for time and date to maximize the use of the transit vehicle.
The service will also be available to travellers who may wish to use the system for other than
medical reasons. Many residents on the north shore work at remote mine locations and need to
commute to Thunder Bay for flight connections. This service will be available to them as well as
regular passengers who may need to travel anywhere between Manitouwadge/Longlac and
Thunder Bay. The service will also explore the delivery of diagnostic samples horn hospitals to
the regional laboratory.
Schedules and rates have not been finalized. A team is being assembled to establish the service
before the end of this year.
21 August 2008
New addition to Senior Management
I am pleased to announce that Jocelyn Bourgoin will be rejoining the Manitouwadge General Hospital Senior Management Team effective April 1, 2007.
Since leaving in 2001, Mr. Bourgoin has successfully co-ordinated a regional ambulance service in the Thunder Bay District, working for the City of Thunder Bay. Most recently, he was appointed President of the Provincial Ambulance Association. He returns with added skills and is eager to re-assume his position of Director of Community Outreach.
His duties will include liaising with the newly developed LHIN's and our community allied health partners. He will also co-ordinate and Chair all Committee's in the hospital, excluding MAC.
I am confident that you will join me in welcoming Jocelyn back to the Manitouwadge General Hospital.
Judith C. Harris
CEO
Hospital Staff Second To None
Dear Editor (The Echo),
Drs. MacTavish, Petersen, and Chatur wish to thank the nurses, laboratory and radiology technicians, as well as all supporting staff at the Manitouwadge Hospital for their especially hard work and dedication. The hospital has been experiencing large volumes of complex and very ill patients, particularly over the last 2 weeks. There have been nurses working exhausting 12 – 18 hour shifts, with some of them working as many as 9 of these shifts in 11 days. Many nurses have foregone breaks and meals at times because of the intensity of patient care required. Lab and X Ray personnel have been called away from their families at night more often than usual because of needed diagnostic tests. The people of Manitouwadge should be proud of the exemplary dedication of their hospital staff.
Drs. MacTavish, Petersen, and Chatur
Manitouwadge
MGH Nurses Achieve Advanced Standing
Over the last month, nurses at the Manitouwadge General Hospital have all been successfully upgraded to Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) provider status. All of the nurses were keen to have the additional training, especially with the recent increase in the number of patients with heart problems presenting to the MGH Emergency Department. Following weeks of preparation, the nurses were required to pass an intensive two-day course at the hospital.
A state of the art simulator using a computer driven mannequin purchased by the hospital was employed to test the nurses' ability to participate in managing dozens of different types of cardiac arrests. The simulator will be utilized on a monthly basis to continue to upgrade and refresh the nurses' skills. The courses are organized by Dr. MacTavish, who is an ACLS Course Director with the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario, and co-instructed by Dr. Chatur.
June 28,2006
Manitouwadge General Hospital to become a Teaching Hospital
The Manitouwadge General Hospital recently played host to faculty members of the new Medical School in Thunder Bay. Dr. Hunt, Vice Dean of the Medical School and Dr. McCready, Associate Dean - Clinical Affairs visited our community and made a presentation to members of our medical staff and senior administration. They gave an overview of "where they were, where they are and what's in the future".
The new medical school is interested in placing students in rural communities to assist with their curriculum such as: Community Learning Sessions/Clinical Experiences/other educational interests.
Our physicians will be appointed to the Faculty and will assist with providing clinical experiences and tutoring when students are placed in Manitouwadge.
Both Dr. Hunt and Dr. McCready were impressed with our facility and the services we are able to provide. They feel students will receive valuable medical experiences in our facility and clinic.
Our first student will begin his learning session with us in June and others will be placed on a regular basis. This is a positive step in recruiting and retaining physicians and we are all very exciting to become part of this new endeavour
Published May 3, 2006