OMG Digital Magazine Issue 257 4th May 2017 | Page 51

OMG Digital Magazine | 257 | Thursday 4th May 2017 • PAGE 51
MOST NURSES
THROW AWAY CAPS
AND STOPPERS.
SHE DIDN’T. WHAT
SHE DID INSTEAD IS
REMARKABLE.
By: ERIN CANTY
Where other people saw
trash, longtime nurse Tilda
Shalof saw treasure.
Shalof’s friend, visual artist Vanessa Herman-Landau,
came up with the idea of using the thingamabobs to
make a large scale mosaic mural.
“I hope young nurses and young doctors see this and
hopefully it makes them remember that all these little
things we do are huge for the patient,” Shalof said. “We
do it hundreds of times a day and night for all of these
years, but each thing that we did with each little piece
of plastic meant so much to the patients and that’s
really what this mural represents.”
Back in 1987, her  first year as a nurse in the intensive
care unit, Shalof noticed the connectors, medicine
caps, syringe covers, stoppers, and tops left over from
her daily work. They were bright, colorful, come in
a multitude of shapes and sizes, and are completely
sterile. Instead of just tossing the pieces, Shalof started
a collection.
“I thought well, gee, they’re so cute, they’re pretty,”
Shalof told the Toronto Star. “They remind me of so
Not only did Shalof keep bags and bags of plastic out
of the landfill, she created a moving, living tribute that
can inspire oth