Power outages are part of life in Canada. We know what they are like and, most times, we're prepared with extra candles and flashlights. But what happens when the power is completely out at a hospital? What impact does that have on patients, families, staff, physicians or anyone else in the hospital at the time?
Susan Kilbride Roper is a mental health advocate who started volunteering the day after she was diagnosed with Type 1 bipolar disorder. On the day of that diagnosis, she asked herself, “what do I do now?" Her psychiatrist advised her to learn more about her mental illness and join a peer support group. It wasn’t long after that she started leading the group.
Dr. Deborah Parker, by way of Alberta, came to Halifax for a medical residency in psychiatry and stayed because she loves the east coast way of life, but also because she got the opportunity she always wanted – ‘running’ a program to help mental health clients use exercise as medicine.
Clinical psychologist Tammy Lynn Kontuk teaches clients quick, easy-to-use strategies they can use to feel better, less stressed and lonely, and to end a little bit of their emotional suffering each day. She believes everyone should learn these basic mental health tips to help themselves and others.
With winter in the rear-view mirror, Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) is reminding people where they can and can’t park at Cape Breton Regional Hospital.
As a volunteer resources consultant, Soroush Moghaddam develops volunteer programs for five hospitals in the Antigonish, Guysborough and Strait areas. He also recruits new volunteers and supports existing ones as they lend their time and skills to support patient care.
