Each May, National Physiotherapy Month is celebrated across Canada recognizing the integral role of physiotherapists and physiotherapy assistants.

A valued part of our multidisciplinary healthcare team at Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare, these individuals help restore the lives of our patients in nearly all of our inpatient and outpatient programs.

Our physiotherapy team consists of skilled professionals trained to assess and treat various neurological and orthopaedic conditions, fall related injuries, as well as deconditioning. They work hard to help restore our patients' range of motion, strength, coordination, balance, transfers, walking, and ability to climb stairs.

In honour of National Physiotherapy Month, Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare's determined physiotherapy team is asking staff and our community to " Donate your Kicks ".

Proper footwear is so important when trying to get patients up standing, transferring, and walking. A lack of proper footwear can significantly impede a patient’s ability to become more mobile. Often we see patients during their hospital stay, who may not have family members in the area, or whose financial constraints make it difficult for them to access good footwear.

Our physiotherapists want your help to build our inventory of used but in good repair running shoes in our Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare Clothing Closet to help support our goal of getting people moving. 

As part of our revamped Changing Lives Together Recognition program we announced the Values In Action Award. This monthly award recognizes an individual for whose actions exemplify the values of Respect, Teamwork, Compassion and Social Responsibility – also known as, OUR CORPORATE VALUES. These values are the foundation of the work we carry out daily to our patients, families, and community.

 

For the month of March, Judy Wyllie our Executive Leadership Coach nominated her coworker,  Nyasha Kapfumvuti, Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare’s Multimedia Specialist  for this award. As part of this nomination, Nyasha will be considered for the Outstanding Demonstration of HDGH Values Presidents Award in spring 2020.

 

The Nomination Letter:

It is my great pleasure to recognize and nominate Nyasha Kapfumvuti, our part-time Multimedia Specialist and eLearn Administrator at HDGH for the Values in Action Award. I have been blessed to work closely with Nyasha for the past 3 years. I believe that he embodies all of our values. Compassion and Teamwork in particular really stand out for me when I think about him and when I hear the feedback from people he serves in his role. Nyasha has a kind and gentlemanly way about him that makes every person he interacts with feel important and valued. He truly demonstrates compassion for his fellow worker, striving to understand the experience of the learner and to improve and ease people's on-line learning experience. He is very knowledgeable and generously shares his expertise across teams when invited, in a modest and humble manner. At the same time he isn't afraid to say when he doesn't know, which makes others comfortable to do the same; to be curious and open to learn. Nyasha is constantly thinking about ways to improve the experience of learners at HDGH. He personally replies to and follows up every question, inquiry or frustration that may come his way in the course of his work with respect and compassion. Nyasha has forged a collaborative working relationship with people and teams inside and outside of HDGH to tap into and share leading practices and tools. He has breathed new life into our eLearn modules and raised the bar on the quality of A/V support available to presenters and speakers at HDGH and our community partners alike. I can honestly say that I am a better person for knowing and working with Nyasha.

 

As Nyasha supports nearly all departments at Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare in some capacity, a number of his colleagues surprised him in his office as he was presented his award.

 

Nyasha was visibly surprised, finding it difficult to express how he was feeling. He ultimately said, “I’m so grateful to work alongside you all. People like me, we’re always watching and learning so thank you for teaching me so many valuable things. I’ve never had an experience as great as being at this organization.”

 

An aspiring Engineer in his last semester at the University of Windsor, Nyasha joined our team in 2016 and is eager for what the future holds.

 

“Creativity is one thing that has consistently been a talent and a passion for me,” Nyasha expresses. “I’m not certain where I am going to end up, but I know I’ll be happy if creativity is at the heart of it.”

 

Congratulations Nyasha!

On Sunday, May 5 ^th , Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare welcomed some important guests who travelled across the world to hear how we support those battling an ‘invisible addiction’.

In the summer of 2018, Japan legalized casino resort gambling across the country. In an effort to proactively support the possibility of gambling and gaming addictions, members of the Japan Sustainable Responsible Gaming Council (JSRG) – Dr. Naoyuki Nishimura, Eiji Kasai, Takayuki Kin, and Mas Watanabe – teamed up with Ontario’s Responsible Gambling Council to tour and learn from programs throughout Southwestern Ontario and Michigan.

The tour brought them to Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare’s Centre for Problem Gambling and Digital Dependency where they gained frontline expertise from Gambling Counsellors Diana Gabriele and Danielle Loiselle, and Psychiatrist, Dr. Pat Montaleone.

The JSRG, along with CEO of Ontario’s Responsible Gambling Council, Shelley White, spent nearly three hours touring our facility, meeting clients, hearing about our Gambling and Digital Dependency programs, and asking questions that will ultimately build their knowledge base for helping those in their own country.

Diana and Danielle were eager to share their knowledge and provide a worthwhile experience for our Japanese guests; they researched tirelessly to ensure the visit from start to finish was a positive and culturally appropriate one. As a thank you for the visit, each guest received a Canada-themed bag of goodies which included maple syrup, a Crunchy bar, toffee, a hat – that had “Love” written across the front with the letter ‘o’ in the shape of a maple leaf, a nod to Mr. Kin’s company LOVE Entertainment Hospitality – a Canadian flag, and Our People of Faith: The story of Hôtel-Dieu Grace Hospital, all packed together topped with a red and white Kusudama, a Japanese decorative origami flower that is said to bring good luck and good fortune.

On behalf of Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare and our Centre for Problem Gambling and Digital Dependency, thank you Japan Sustainable Responsible Gaming Council and Ontario’s Responsible Gambling Council for choosing to be proactive in supporting those with addictions and for choosing our organization to learn from.

Through the ProsperUs project a firm commitment was made to align community resources to ensure that the most vulnerable, and the most promising members of our population – our children and youth – succeed in their education, career and life. 

All are welcome to take part in a number of upcoming community consultations lead by ProsperUs, called Data Walks , taking place in neighbourhoods around Windsor and Essex County throughout the month of May.

A Data Walk is a 3-hour guided tour through data stations where participants will be given the opportunity to share their thoughts in an interactive group setting.  Each station outlines local data and some results about the state of our region, related to childhood poverty, the cost of living, early development and school readiness, math and literacy success in school, and income by education level.  Data Walks will allow residents to learn about their neighbourhood and the effects on local children and youth and provide their feedback, stories and input.

View the full list of Data Walks.