'We just want them to know that we love them': Giving ICU workers a pick-me-up
The mother of a child who spends a lot of time in hospital wants to give staff in Alberta’s overloaded intensive care units (ICUs) a coffee to help keep them going.
Alberta’s hospitals are in a critical state, according to healthcare officials.
The situation has parents of chronically ill children worried about what would happen if they needed to bring their kids to hospital.
“It’s scary to hear that there may not be a bed available for my child,” said Kaela Hendra, whose nine-year-old son had been in and out of hospital since he was born. “The conditions he has are lifelong, he does have chronic lung disease and a brain condition that, at any time he could need brain surgery.
“The thought that ICU beds are being taken up and hospital beds are being taken up and those may not be available to us was really concerning.”
According to a pediatric neurosurgery nurse, parents don’t need to worry about their children not being able to get care in hospitals.
“Whatever the situation is, if there’s kids that need urgent and emergent care, we will provide the absolute highest level quality of care that we always have,” said Wendy Beaudoin.
However, when Hendra was speaking to an ICU nurse, she realized how tired staff were.
“She just said how bad it is right now and that they needed help, it really sounded to me that they needed a little bit of hope,” said Hendra.
The idea came to start a GoFundMe page to raise $1,000 to get coffee for ICU staff. According to Hendra, they reached that fundraising goal in 45 minutes and raised the goal.
“Right now we’re at $6,000, which is just mind blowing to have the support and let people know that we really care about those folks in the hospital,” said Hendra.
“It just makes you smile and catch your breath and shed a tear all at the same time,” added Beaudoin. “And really makes you feel like you can get up and go to work the next day, which is probably the biggest thing right now.”
The fourth wave of the pandemic has been the hardest so far on healthcare workers, according to Beaudoin. She hopes people remember that front-line workers are people too.
“(They’re) trying to do everything they can for every Albertans and find some room in your heart to support that and set politics aside just let us get through the pandemic right now.”
Hendra is planning to start delivering gift cards to workers this week.
“This won’t be enough, it’ll never be enough, but we just want them to know that we love them and we’re so thankful for them and if they need something we’ll be here for it too,” said Hendra.
With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Amanda Anderson
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Weather alerts issued for 7 provinces, 1 territory
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Luxury cruise line selling world cruise suite for US$1.7 million
Luxury operator Regent Seven Seas Cruises is raising their price tag to eye-watering levels, with a suite on an upcoming 140-day world voyage costing US$1.7 million.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
A Filipino villager is nailed to a cross for the 35th time on Good Friday to pray for world peace
A Filipino villager has been nailed to a wooden cross for the 35th time to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a brutal Good Friday tradition he said he would devote to pray for peace in Ukraine, Gaza and the disputed South China Sea.
Ontario homeowner on the hook for $27,000 when contractor severed power line
An Ontario man who built a garage on his property has been locked in a battle with his electricity provider for a year and half over a severed power line.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
'Oppenheimer' finally premieres in Japan to mixed reactions and high emotions
'Oppenheimer' finally premiered Friday in the nation where two cities were obliterated 79 years ago by the nuclear weapons invented by the American scientist who was the subject of the Oscar-winning film. Japanese filmgoers' reactions understandably were mixed and highly emotional.