The Kemptville District Hospital is getting a nice boost to mark National Volunteer Week.
The KDH Auxiliary has donated $40,000 to the hospital, which will be used to support the installation of a Negative Pressure Isolation Room in the Inpatient Medical Unit.
Hospital CEO Frank Vassallo says it’s amazing to see that amount raised – despite the fact that the hospital’s entire volunteer program was put on hold back in March of last year.
“When you go into the hospital, and don’t see these folks there – it’s sad,” Vassallo said. “It’s sad because each and every one of those people not only represent the auxiliary but they represent the spirit and the ethos of what makes this community so great.”
This donation represents an amazing accomplishment for the Auxiliary in a year of challenges that saw their Coffee Bar and Gift Shop shut down, and their major annual fundraiser, Hey Day, cancelled.
The donations came from a number of sources, including a large campaign at B&H Your Community Grocer, where 3,250 customers donated a toonie.
Vassallo says that was just one of the campaigns volunteers organized to raise money for the hospital.
“There were sidewalk sales outside the hospital, and much of the gift shop merchandise was sold at the ‘My Kemptville Market’,” Vassallo said. “We’re just delighted that they found a way, very innovatively, to continue to support the hospital.”
The Auxiliary chose to support the to-be-constructed Negative Pressure Isolation Room with this year’s donation due to the urgency of COVID-19.
Vassallo says the room is intended for patients with communicable diseases, especially airborne ones, to ensure the safety of other patients, staff and visitors.
“This really is a testament to our efforts to build an extramural hospital function,” Vassallo said. “By that I mean, outside the walls of our hospital. We don’t believe healthcare ends within our four walls, it goes beyond into the community and I believe that the community has stepped up during this time.”
To recognize its volunteers during National Volunteer Week, the hospital is hosting a Virtual Volunteer Appreciation event on Thursday at 2 p.m.