Sault Area Hospital recognized for organ donation efforts
Sault Area Hospital is being hailed as a champion of organ and tissue donation by the Trillium Gift of Life Network. The hospital is being recognized for its efforts to integrate organ and tissue donation into end-of-life care.
The hospital is being praised on two fronts: exceeding the provincial conversion rate of potential donors becoming actual donors, and for facilitating organ donation discussions with patients nearing end-of-life.
The hospital's director of clinical programs said the latter can be very challenging work for staff.
"It is not easy for the families and loved ones either, and I am quite proud of the work that we do here," said Mindy Lindstedt. "We do often get recognition and thanks from patients and families for how well we've navigated some of those conversations and made these decisions easier on them."
Lindstedt and the hospital are encouraging everyone to register to donate organs and tissue at BeADonor.ca.
Deanna Lynn knows the importance of organ donation, receiving a lung transplant in 2012. The Orillia native remembers what it was like to take her first breath with her new lung.
"I automatically filled with such joy, I can't explain it," said Lynn. "My whole being filled with such joy that I took my first breath without help."
Lynn said she had only months to live when she received her transplant, and is forever grateful to the donor's family. Getting a new lease on life included watching one of her sons get married.
"I was on oxygen when my eldest son got married and that was horrid, walking down the aisle holding oxygen and can't breathe," she said. "But the second son after my transplant ... I've had a baby granddaughter, my other son is getting married pretty soon, I've been travelling."
Meantime, officials at Sault Area Hospital said the city exceeds provincial donor numbers with a 48 per cent registration rate, placing the Soo at 73 out of 170 communities in Ontario.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Golf season a summer tourism driver in Canada
Golf is a sign of spring and summer and a major driver for seasonal tourism, experts say.
The kids from 'Mrs. Doubtfire are all SUPER grown up now, and we're not OK
The adorable trio of child actors from the 1993 classic comedy 'Mrs. Doubtfire,' which starred the late and great Robin Williams, are all grown up and looking back on their seminal time together.
Parliamentary report on Emergencies Act decision is 18 months past due — and counting
The erstwhile group of senators and MPs studying the federal government's invocation of the Emergencies Act over the "Freedom Convoy" was supposed to present its findings in December. December of 2022, that is.
Quebec man who threatened Trudeau, Legault online sentenced to 20 months in jail
A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.
Britney Spears 'home and safe' after paramedics responded to an incident at the Chateau Marmont, source tells CNN
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
Police arrest 3 Indian nationals in killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
Canadian doctor concerned new weight-loss drug Wegovy may be used inappropriately
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.