Joseph Brant Hospital 2017 Annual Report JBH Annual Report 2017 final | Page 17

MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR MESSAGE FROM THE BOARD CHAIR
Volunteering Eh! is the theme for National Volunteer Week at
JBH this year, in reference to Canada’s 150th birthday. In true
Canadian fashion, the citizens of Burlington and the surrounding
area have been strong supporters of our community hospital.
The evidence of this can be seen in the hallways, at bedsides,
and within the waiting areas of the Hospital and Wellness
House. Our 634 volunteers contributed 74,830 hours this year,
bringing their unique experiences, skills, and enthusiasm to
Joseph Brant Hospital. When helping our patients, greeting
and directing visitors, or simply offering a listening ear and
a dedicated moment of compassion, our volunteers are
contributing something irreplaceable to JBH. Their unwavering
commitment to kindness is an invaluable strength, and they
bring it to JBH every day through the simple act of volunteering. The hospital is abuzz with excitement as the opening of the
new Patient Tower fast approaches and the Auxiliary is well
underway with its own plans to ensure the bu sinesses are
set up for success, including Tim Hortons, the Gift Shop and
Daily Vendors. While these retail businesses are tried and
true and provide a great source of revenue for the Auxiliary,
it is important to recognize that two thirds of our revenue is
generated largely by volunteer activity. The Gift Shop, Lottery
and our various fundraising events are staffed by a committed
army of volunteers who dedicate countless hours of their
personal time and consistently deliver outstanding results.
Included in these fundraising efforts is our new successful
“Downtown Funk” event, hosted last May at the Leggat,
Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick, GMC on Fairview Street, with
just over 400 attendees. The success of this event has given
the organizing team great momentum and planning is well
underway to ensure we have the same success on November
3, 2017! Another of our very successful long-standing
events are the Fall and Winter Auctions, run by a dedicated
Committee for 18 years. Thank you to our members for your
creativity and dedication to hosting these great events.
Volunteers support a number of programs and services at JBH,
and their role within JBH has grown alongside the Hospital’s
transformation. Beginning this year, volunteers are now very
active in the Speech Therapy program, encouraging patients to
reach their communication goals. Melissa Masco, SLP comments,
“The invaluable volunteer support has enabled us to provide a
more comprehensive and efficient service to our patients.
Most importantly, patients have a greater sense of satisfaction
and motivation which is essential to their overall progress and
well-being.”
Our volunteers also continue to show admirable commitment
to long-running programs at JBH. The Hospital Elder Life
Program (HELP) celebrated its 10th anniversary this year. This
program assists older patients in returning home from their
hospital stay by providing unique interventions and encouraging
independence. In these 10 years, over 250 people of nearly
all ages have volunteered to help patients comfortably and
confidently return to their home or previous living situation.
Once again, thank you to our many steadfast, skillful volunteers
at Joseph Brant Hospital. Your time, hard work and unfailing
compassion is an act of care that reaches the entirety of our
organization, and JBH is simply not the same hospital without
its volunteers.
Through the efforts of the Auxiliary members and staff, the
well-managed businesses of Tim Hortons, the Gift Shop,
community-based fundraisers and initiatives such as the break
open tickets, vendor days and book sales, we are excited
to make our 2016-2017 donation to the Redevelopment
Campaign for $310,000. These funds will help purchase state
of the art patient beds, as part of the Auxiliary’s $5,000,000
pledge – this donation will truly impact the patient experience
and quality of care.
Thank you and congratulations to all of the volunteers and
staff who contributed their time, talents and resources to
Auxiliary initiatives and helped make this donation in support
of our community hospital.
Serena Lee
Chair, Board of Directors
Mary Lou Tinmouth
Director, Volunteer Resources
Annual Report 2016-2017
17