While much of the world remains uncertain this holiday season, the importance of supporting those caring for our community close to home has never been clearer.
For medical teams at Langley Memorial Hospital, COVID’s early challenges stemmed from the unknown and then evolving health guidelines. Then, as COVID numbers grew throughout the Fraser Valley, Langley accepted patients from other communities, increasing the stress on its own medical teams.
This holiday season, health care workers will take on more shifts to help shorten pandemic wait lists, but that means spending more time away from their families, increasing the already significant risk of burnout.
“The past year has been difficult for everyone,” reflects Dr. Navneet Sidhu, an internal medicine specialist at the hospital and board member with the Langley Memorial Hospital Foundation. “People are just exhausted.”
While the number of COVID patients has ebbed and flowed, earlier restrictions mean medical teams are now seeing more patients in need of care, and those patients are often sicker because they’ve had to wait, Dr. Sidhu adds.
“We are all in medicine to help,” she says, “but it really makes you feel good when there’s a thank-you – the ‘thank-yous’ keep you going when you’re exhausted.”
So the next time you see a Langley doctor, nurse or health care worker, take a moment to share your gratitude. And if you have the ability to give financially this season, that donation will have a far-reaching impact, supporting patients but also making it easier for your Langley Memorial Hospital team to do their job. “In caring for your community, you’re also caring for the caregivers,” Dr. Sidhu says.
Better yet? An anonymous donor has stepped forward to match your donation, dollar-for-dollar, up to $55,000!
Give your thanks today
No donation is too small, and whatever you can afford will be put straight to work ensuring caregivers have the tools they need to diagnose and treat patients efficiently, so patients can return home to their families faster, and in good health.
And for an extra-special touch – a personal thank you – your donation can arrive with a note of kindness for Langley’s caring hospital staff.
“Imagine you’re a health care worker at the end of a long shift, reading a few words of appreciation from a donor. A small thank-you for their outstanding work treating patients in need and creating a healthy community,” says Heather Scott, Executive Director, Langley Memorial Hospital Foundation.
To give your thanks to your Langley Memorial Hospital team this holiday season, visit lmhfoundation.com/donate, where you can provide a one-time or recurring gift, or give in the honour or memory of a loved one.
