Latest news with #IWKHealthCentre
CTV News
4 days ago
- Health
- CTV News
IWK launches African Nova Scotian Service to provide ‘culturally responsive care'
The IWK Health Centre in Halifax has launched a new program designed to provide mental health and addiction services to African Nova Scotian children, youth and their families who have ties to one of the province's 52 historic Black communities. The African Nova Scotian Service (ANSS) at the children's hospital will support historical African Nova Scotian children and youth up to their 19th birthday. The program will include services such as: individual and family mental health and addiction support educational programs treatment groups community outreach and resource navigation 'This initiative addresses the long-standing underrepresentation of African Nova Scotian families within traditional health care systems and aims to deliver care that honours the unique cultural context of the community,' reads a news release from the IWK Health Centre. The program will be supported by an interprofessional group of clinicians that includes social workers, nurses, occupational therapists and recreational therapists, 'all of whom are of African Nova Scotian ancestry with deep roots in the community.' 'The official launch of the IWK African Nova Scotian Service is a historical milestone for IWK and the African Nova Scotian (ANS) community and I am so proud to be a part of this journey,' says Cynthia Jordan, ANSS Clinical Team Lead. 'Providing culturally responsive care is about integrating evidence-based programs and delivering service with a lens that honours ANS culture, strength, resiliency, values, and beliefs. The IWK ANSS team is committed to building trusting relationships within the historical ANS community it serves.' Nova Scotians who would like to access IWK ANSS can call Central Referral toll-free at 1-855-922-1122. According to the release, calls will take between 20 and 30 minutes and an Access Navigator will collect your information and connect you to the appropriate services. Nova Scotians can request ANSS support at the time of first contact or at any point during service. 'I was so happy to learn the IWK now has a service that prioritizes the needs of historical African Nova Scotian children, youth, and their families,' says former IWK patient, Janelle Oliver-Harris. 'African Nova Scotians will have the opportunity to see someone that not only looks like them but understands and provides service in a way that honours their diverse needs. Since receiving services at IWK, I experienced having a Black clinician and I know the benefits of having diversity reflected in mental health services. Having this service and team will make a difference.' For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
CBC
11-06-2025
- Health
- CBC
Halifax hospital aims to prevent unplanned C-sections through 'empowering' technique
There's a superstition in health care that more babies are born under full moons, and now a Halifax hospital is using a strategy named after the lunar phase to try to deliver more newborns without unplanned caesarean sections. The so-called full moon circuit is a series of labouring positions meant to result in "shorter labour, less pain, less fetal distress" and encourage "more spontaneous vaginal births," said Jennifer Jollymore, a clinical nurse specialist on the birth unit at the IWK Health Centre. Jollymore and a charge nurse challenged staff to start using the technique in 2023. Over the course of three months, the IWK's rate of unplanned C-sections — when a baby is born through an incision in the patient's abdomen and uterus — fell to 16 per cent from 24 per cent. While the IWK can't definitively link that drop to the full moon circuit, Jollymore said there's reason for optimism. "We knew that we were just beginning to sort of capture the potential," Jollymore told CBC Radio's Information Morning Nova Scotia on Tuesday. The IWK said in a news release it's looking at creating a "full moon challenge toolkit" for other Canadian hospitals in an effort to lower the rate of unplanned C-sections, which it said can put stress on the patient as well as staffing levels. Frequent position changes During the full moon circuit, nurses help their patients through a circular sequence of lying on their left side, moving to an upright position, lying on their right side, and finally shifting into a forward-leaning position. The sequence helps labour progress by positioning the baby in the pelvis. There's simple science behind the technique: gravity. And while it doesn't actually have anything to do with moon phases, it's a fitting name. "The full moon represents a circle, just like the cervix is a circle and you want to put pressure from the baby's head all around it to help it dilate open," Jollymore explained in a text message. "Plus ... it's a little cheeky, pun intended." Jollymore said there are a number of reasons that a patient might have a C-section, including having the procedure in previous births. Another cause is labour dystocia, when labour has stopped progressing for any number of reasons. Working with epidurals The full moon technique is especially helpful for patients who've had an epidural and may not feel the same need to change labouring positions as people who labour without pain medication, said Jollymore. "Discomfort or pain in labour is adaptive; it's telling us what we need to do next," she said. "Unfortunately when we introduce regional anesthesia, our labouring folks are not feeling those same prompts. "Sometimes epidurals get a bit of a bad reputation for 'slowing things down,' when really ... they're tools and we have to work with them." In her role, Jollymore helps people prepare for their births, especially those with bad past experiences. She said the response to the full moon approach has been "very positive." "Being really active participants in their labour and feeling, you know, that there's things that they can do to help promote their progress is very empowering for people," she said. "They really appreciate it." There are some 4,500 births every year at the IWK Health Centre.
The Sun
11-06-2025
- Health
- The Sun
Woman, 31, adds name to euthanasia list after ‘grim' cancer diagnosis – then she receives ‘haunting' realisation
A WOMAN who was told she had advanced-stage breast cancer and only months to live received shocking news just days later. Gabriella Patey, 31, received the "grim diagnosis" that had also claimed her mum's life, and began telling family and friends, as well as making end-of-life preparations. 2 2 Living in Canada, Gabriella put a claim through her bank for critical illness insurance and put her name on the list for medically assisted dying. She told Global News: "I just came to terms with it. This is what it was, just absolutely devastating." But just says later, her family doctor called with some unbelievable news. She recalled: "I got another call from my primary care physician stating, actually, there had been a critical patient error at the IWK (Health Centre). "And the file with the grim diagnosis did not even belong to me. "I didn't even really believe her. I mean why should I? They had made this mistake once, how could they make it again?" Gabriella first discovered a lump on her breast in October 2023, not long after her mum had died of the disease. Over the course of a year, she had multiple ultrasounds at the Breast Health Clinic at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia. In May 17, following a biopsy, Gabriella received the "great news" there were no traces of breast cancer. But two and a half weeks later, her family doctor called to say there must have been mistake as she did actually have cancer. I planned my suicide after my GP misdiagnosed me - turns out I wasn't depressed The news came just five days after she'd finished successful treatment for thyroid cancer. Two days later, however, her family doctor confirmed it was actually an error - she didn't have cancer. Gabriella's doctor went to the IWK to check her lab report. She said: "A director in the pathology department spoke to my primary care physician verbally admitted that it was a critical patient error." While Gabriella has received an apology from IWK, she's been left doubting Nova Scotia's health-care system and is pursuing legal action. She said she and her family have been left haunted by what's happened. 'It's absolutely devastating to get a diagnosis like that. I had to look my husband in the face and tell him,' she said. '(We have) all these plans for our future and (I had to) say, 'I may not be here to live out those plans with you.' I mean we're crying ourselves to sleep every night.' In a statement to Global News, a spokesperson from IWK Health said "concerns of this nature are taken seriously." Spokesperson Andrea Slaney wrote: "Due to patient privacy, IWK Health is unable to comment on specific cases. "However, concerns of this nature are taken seriously and a formal investigation process is followed with engagement from IWK's Quality, Patient Safety and Patient Experience team."
CTV News
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Anne Murray donates iconic bedazzled JUNOs jersey to raise funds for IWK
Anne Murray acknowledges the crowd after receiving the Lifetime Achievement award during the Juno Awards, in Vancouver, B.C., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns) Canadian music icon, Anne Murray, is turning heads once again—this time for a meaningful act of generosity. The singer has donated the now-famous bedazzled Team Canada hockey jersey she wore while accepting her Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2025 JUNO Awards. The one-of-a-kind outfit, covered in rhinestones, is being auctioned off to raise funds for the IWK Health Centre in Halifax. 'I tried to think of what would be the best thing to do with it, and of course IWK came to mind right away,' Murray said in an interview with CTV Atlantic's Katie Kelly. The red-and-white jersey first made waves at the JUNOs in March, where Murray made a rare public appearance to receive her 26th career JUNO. In her speech, Murray noted she was pressured to move to New York or Los Angeles early in her career because most of her work was in the U.S., but she said – to a loud round of applause and cheers – she 'just couldn't do it.' 'I knew instinctively that I needed a place to go to escape when my work was done,' she told the crowd. 'Canada was my safe haven, my safety blanket, my light at the end of the tunnel and it still is.' Murray says the idea came together at the last minute. 'I couldn't find a thing to wear, and my friend said, 'Why don't you wear a hockey jersey?' I thought, 'What a great idea!'' she said. Her daughter Dawn suggested she 'bling it up,' and with help from her Vancouver-based team, the glittering garment was born. While the outfit stole the spotlight on JUNO night, Murray hopes it will now do even more off-stage. 'What's more heart-wrenching than a sick child? I didn't even hesitate when we talked about donating it,' she said. 'I'm really happy that's where it's going.' The auction runs until June 12, with 100 per cent of proceeds supporting the IWK Health Centre, which provides specialized care to women, children, youth and families in the Maritimes.
CTV News
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Maritimers step up in generosity again for IWK Telethon
Watch the 41st annual IWK Telethon for Children on CTV and support Maritime children and families in need. Every year, Maritimers rally behind a cause that is close to home and touches countless lives – and that's supporting the IWK Health Centre through the IWK Telethon for Children. The telethon – broadcast live on CTV Atlantic – brings in millions each year for the IWK, which is an internationally renowned children's and women's hospital. But the hospital itself does need help, said IWK Foundation President and CEO Jennifer Gillivan, because government funding only goes so far. 'It's an old building and it needs upgrades,' said Gillivan. 'We need new technology. It keeps changing. So, we need better equipment, all the time. We have new programs and research, and it drives new ways to treat kids and patients.' Now in its 41st year, the IWK Telethon has become a powerful showing of the generosity of community, which is always there to support the cause. IWK Telethon Volunteers operate the call-in donation lines at the 41st annual IWK Telethon on Sunday, June 1, 2025. (Jesse Thomas/CTV Atlantic) Last year, it raised a record $7.5 million for its 40th anniversary. Even when times are tough financially for people, Gillivan said Maritimers step up in generosity. 'There's something right about a community when they know to put kids and women first,' said Gillivan. 'To actually support them in this way, there's just something right about that.' It's no small task to pull off the telethon and TV broadcast, but it's a labour of love for the roughly 400 volunteers and those working in front of the cameras, telling the stories, and those behind the cameras helping to deliver the show. IWK Telethon Former CTV Atlantic chief anchor Steve Murphy and former CTV News at Five host Jayson Baxter share a laugh during the 41st IWK Telethon on Sunday, June 1, 2025. (Jesse Thomas/CTV Atlantic) 'I don't think people realize how much work has gone into building the set, writing the scripts and finding those patient stories,' said CTV's Liz Rigney, who is also the lead producer of the IWK Telethon. 'There is a big team, and everyone is so happy and so proud at the end of this production.' The IWK Telethon is about raising money for the hospital but at the heart of it, it's about highlighting the patient stories and the real lives and families who have been touched by the incredible work and staff who make a difference at the IWK. 'I can't believe the level of skill, the knowledge, and the genius of the people who work at the IWK,' said Rigney. 'I don't think people understand, it's a world class facility and we're so happy to support it with the telethon.' The IWK Telethon runs until 6 p.m. Sunday. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
