Winter 2013 - Women's College Hospital

Jewellery Sale
Thursday, Feb 7, 2013
10 AM to 2 PM
Front Lobby
February GM
Thursday, Feb 14, 2013
2:00 PM
Boardroom, 2nd floor East
Spring Bake Sale
Thursday, Mar. 21, 2013
10 :30 AM to 1:30 PM
Front Lobby
HAAO Spring Conference
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Annual General Meeting
Dinner
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Columbus Event Centre
Walk for Women’s
Sunday, June 9, 2013
10:00 AM
David Balfour Park
Big Book and Art Sales
Last Tuesday of the month
10 AM to 2 PM
Front Lobby
ONLY
12
MORE
WEEKS
When you receive this issue of the THE ANKH, it will be 12 weeks
until Phase 1 of the new hospital will be ready. The move will take
place on one weekend in May and soon after the old hospital will be
demolished for the start of Phase 2. We are all excited to be moving
into a new, state of the art facility even though the lobby and pink
cube will not be ready until 2015. The building will herald a new
organization of clinics that will be patient-friendly, with efficiency the
operative word.
As volunteers, many of us will be called upon to direct and guide
patients on their first visits. There will be challenges as we learn new
locations and routines.
But there will also be nostalgia as we leave the building, our home
for over 70 years. The lobby, with its gracious staircase, was the
centre of the Association’s life. We are trying to make good use of it
until the move - raffle tickets sellers are there every day; there will be
three more book sales with art sales added, a jewellery sale in
February, and a final bake sale in March to herald spring.
It will be hard to close the door of the Ankh Gift Shop, which has
been our major fundraising venture since 1947. The Gift Shop began
as a cart and what goes around comes around! We will be having
the “shop on wheels” in the Phase 1 facility until we move into our
new shop when Phase 2 is completed. The final location of book
carts and space for the monthly book sales have yet to be made -
but we will be there until the end of May!
Darleen Bogart
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

CO-PRESIDENTS’ REPORT
2012 was a busy and productive year for the Association.
Fundraising highlights included the Toronto Police Service Caribbean Kick Off Carnival in the
summer. Ruby Brett, Margot Algie and Caroline, along with 4 summer youth sold their raffle tickets
and the TPS donated the $2,136.35 raised to the Association. The three themed bake sales in the
fall were a big success and so many members made an effort to attend which made the events
more special. We should all take pride in our efforts, which includes all those smaller moneyraisers:
over 120,000 pennies from the Penny Pitch; 4000+ books sold in the lobby; and the
equivalent of 4000 cupcakes from bake sales.
Our $1 million pledge is within our grasp! We have less than $30,000 to raise to reach that goal.
The speakers at our meetings were fantastic! They told us about the excitement they feel being a
part of the new thrusts in treatments that are being offered, and pioneered, in many cases, in
WCH’s ambulatory setting. They enlightened us about hearts, breasts, and minds. We learned
about the research that is being conducted at Women’s and how it runs through all the programs.
The word “revolutionary” keeps coming up.
2013’s forward look shows: big sales in the Ankh Gift shop to match their increases before the
year-end after which the inventory wil be reconfigured for our shop-on-wheels; one last sale in the
lobby for each of: jewellery, baking, and raffle tickets, and art-for-sale combined with the book
sales. A theatre night is planned by Future Ventures in the fall.
We are very excited to have Dr. Danielle Martin join us at the February meeting. Dr. Martin has
accepted the newly created position, Vice President, Medical Affairs and Health System Solutions.
This is a great opportunity for us to hear Dr. Martin’s plans for the future.
Dr. Julia Alleyne, Medical Director, Sports C.A.R.E., WCH, will be our guest speaker at the annual
general meeting on May 9th. She will talk about her experiences as the Chief Medical Officer for
the 2010 Canadian Olympics team.
We both want to acknowledge Flora Agnew’s many years of devotion and service to the
Association. A collection of tributes and reminiscences about Flora from Association members has
been sent to her family.
Let’s make the most of our last weeks in the “old” hospital.
Darleen and Caroline
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

WELCOME TO OUR NEW MEMBERS!
Noora Al-Najjar- Foot Care Centre
Uzair Ansari- Research Institute
Valentina Antonipillai- Research Institute
Brendan Beckett- Mental Health
Razvan Bobolicu- Surgical Waiting Room
Susan Dickie- Dermatology
Katrina D'Urzo- Osteoporosis Research
Mina Eslami- Association Volunteer
Ahlam Hawsawi- Infection Prevention
Daniel Ilagan- Dermatology
Jessica Kaisaris- Breast Centre
Abirami Kanesapillai- Gynecology
Ifra Khalil- Surgical Waiting Room
Jane Ly- Health Information
Angela McGarrity- After Cancer Treatment
Clinic
Mahshid Mohseni- Ontario Health Study
Narjes (Sarah) Moradi- Mohs Dermatology
Dalila Nguyen- Health Information
Teri Rattray-Wright- Ankh Gift Shop
Caroline Ripat- Breast Centre
Karli Scully- Breast Centre
Nelly Solovyeva- Complex Care
Rosimay Venancio- Breast Imaging Team
Leader
Cynthia Wesley- Mohs Dermatology
Brynne Yarranton- Ontario Health Study
Trish Yeung- Infection Prevention
NOMINATIONS FOR THE EXECUTIVE BOARD, 2013-2014
President ............................................................................ vacant
Vice President .................................................................... vacant
Secretary ............................................................................ DavilonWallace
Treasurer ............................................................................ Wendy Chou
Gift Shop Co-Chairs……………………….…….Wendy Chou and Bea Chan
Communications Coordinator ............................................. Shiva Barati
Meetings Coordinator ......................................................... vacant
Public Relations Coordinator .............................................. Aspen Tzalalis
Membership Chair .............................................................. Joan Beard
Newsletter Editor ................................................................ Bea Chan
Newsletter Assistant ........................................................... Dianne Atay
Past Co-Presidents ............................ ……………Darleen Bogart and Caroline Grose
Special Events Liaison ....................................................... Angela Muto
Members-at-Large .............................................................. Elizabeth Scorey. Orly Porat
As we do not have a full slate, further nominations are being accepted for the abovenoted
vacant positions. Once the nominee agrees to stand for the position, the
nomination form is to be signed by the nominator and five other members of the
Association. This form must be given to the chair of the committee, Agnes Berge, no later
than one week before the election on February 14, 2013
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

UPDATE FROM VOLUNTEER RESOURCES
It has been a busy and productive fall/winter so far! We had 26 new volunteers join since October
2012, and 21 resigns during this time. There are now 160 volunteers contributing more than 2,000
hours monthly. We have new roles for volunteers in Diabetes and Osteoporosis, and Mental Health
research.
We held two Patient Interaction Learning Sessions on October 2 nd and 3 rd over the lunch hour. A
total of 27 volunteers attended a session. Kim Kennedy-Blackhall and Sarah Dimmock from
Patient Relations joined us to discuss the role of Patient Relations, and how volunteers can access
support in difficult patient situations.
Relocation Transition
The completion date of Phase 1 is on target. The new building is scheduled for completion on April
29, 2013! The hospital’s big move will take place from May 16 th to 19 th , 2013. The new hospital will
reopen for business on May 20 th . Our new Volunteer Resources Program and Association offices
will be located on the 6 th floor. Volunteers will continue to be integral to the operations in the new
hospital and in the early days the Information Desk volunteers will have a significant role to play in
the finding strategy when we first move into the building. {The information desk will be located in
the front lobby). The information desk volunteer team will be a key member of our Patient Flow
(traffic flow both into and out of the building) planning task force, which will commence work later in
the new year. Additional volunteer roles in supporting the clinics will continue and we know that
new roles will emerge after the finalization of the new clinic model.
Please note that The PharmaCentre has moved to the ground floor at 77 Grenville and Education,
CACE, Peters Boyd Academy will be moving to the 9th floor at 790 Bay.
For more information about the relocation efforts please view the presentation at the Special
Operational Readiness Town Hall Meeting - Nov. 27, 2012 – webcast:
http://alex2.sunnybrook.ca/mediasite/Viewer/peid=6139ab9a058f4dccbeb7bd1e6f80b670
Sarah Lord, Volunteer Resources Coordinator
New Family Practice Project – Patient as Observer Approach
Good hand hygiene practices are key to improving safety at WCH and volunteers are playing an
important role in the Patient as Observer (PAO) Approach pilot that was launched in Family
Practice Health Centre in August 2012. As the project’s friendly face, volunteers distribute survey
cards and ask patients to provide feedback on their healthcare provider’s hand hygiene practices.
Volunteers also relay questions from patients and participate in focus group sessions.
The PAO Approach is completing the sixth month of the pilot and to date, 15 volunteers have
devoted their time in distributing 300+ survey cards. A review of completed survey cards allows
the Infection Prevention & Control Department to measure the hand hygiene practices of
healthcare providers and continuously promote patient safety.
Thank you volunteers for enthusiastically contributing in the PAO Approach pilot and a huge thank
you to Sarah Lord and Elise Hannan for tirelessly coordinating volunteers.
WCH Infection Prevention and Control
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

UPCOMING EVENTS
Donations of jewellery may be left with
Sarah Lord in the Volunteer Office
Health care for women REVOLUTIONIZED
association of
volunteers
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
DINNER
All members are invited to the Association’s
Annual General Meeting Dinner and Awards
night. If you are new to the Association, this is
a good opportunity to meet other members.
Date: Thursday, May 9, 2013
Our final
jewellery sale
of the year
Thursday, February 7th
10 am to 2 pm
Lobby, WCH
76 Grenville St.
FEBRUARY GENERAL MEETING
Date: Thursday, February 14, 2013
Time: 2:00 PM, Tea
Location: Boardroom, 2nd Floor East
Guest Speaker: Dr. Danielle Martin, VP Medical
Affairs and Health System Solutions and family
physician in our Family Practice Health Centre
There is no fee for the refreshments but donations
are gladly accepted. A tax deductible receipt will
be issued for donations of $20 or more.
Time: Reception at 5:30 PM,
Dinner at 6:00 PM
Location: Columbus Event Centre
Lower Floor Gallery
901 Lawrence Avenue West
(at Dufferin)
This evening is provided courtesy of the Board
of Directors and Senior Leadership Team of
WCH, in recognition of our volunteer
contribution
Our guest speaker will be Dr. Julie Alleyne,
Medical Director of Sports CARE. She served
as CMO on the London 2012 Canadian
Olympic Committee and will again be CMO for
the Pan Am Games in 2015. Dr Alleyne’s topic
will be: A Decade of Olympics: A Volunteer
Perspective
SPRING BAKE SALE
Thursday, March 21, 2013
10:30 AM to 1:30 PM
Front Lobby
Please bring baking to the Volunteer Lounge
on Wednesday afternoon or Thursday morning
before 9 AM.
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

THE FOURTH ANNUAL WALK FOR WOMEN’S
Attention all walkers! Put on your walking shoes, bring your friends and family and join us for a
walk in the park.
Date: Sunday, June 9, 2013*
Time: 10:00 AM
Location: David Balfour Park is just 2 blocks east of Yonge Street and one block south of St.
Clair Ave E., located very close to public transportation.
*pending approval from Toronto Parks Department, watch for further announcements
BITS AND BYTES
Congratulations to Jocelyn Palm for being awarded the Order of Canada, the nation’s highest
civilian honour. For many years, Joc has been an advocate for Women’s College and a dedicated
supporter of our Association. The hospital will be holding a tea in Joc’s honour on March 6 at 4:00
PM in the Emily Stowe Café.
Book Donations: Until further notice, we cannot accept any book donations until we assess the
book storage space allotted to the Book Group in Phase 1. We do, however, sincerely thank all of
our very generous donors who have worked hard delivering wonderful books. Monies earned
from the sale of these books has contributed towards our pledge to the Capital Campaign.
Penny Pitch: To date, we have collected more than $1,200 from the Penny Jars and Staff
Christmas Luncheon. We also have been selected as recipients of the Coin Box Program at
LCBO stores for the month of January. Keep those pennies coming!! (other change also
accepted J)
The HAAO Spring Conference will be held on April 11 at the Keele Street site of the Humber
River Regional Hospital and hosted by their volunteer association. This is always an informative
day with a chance to meet fellow volunteers. Please advise Caroline Grose if you would like to
attend. The Association pays the registration fee. Rides can be arranged.
The plans for the Association Archives to be donated to the Hospital archives are going well.
The agreement will be signed in the spring.
Where are they now Sohini Mitra, a former volunteer, is currently attending medical school at
University of Ottawa and writes: “I am good. Started clerkship in September, which means I am
out of the classrooms and on the wards and in clinics now. It’s a lot of fun, quite exciting and
getting to learn lots busy nonetheless. Already rotated through psychiatry, family medicine,
anesthesia and on Emergency Medicine now. Just coming off of my 2 weeks winter break- went
back to India for that, that was great. Ya it’s busy but it’s exciting times. Basically the rest of 3rd
year is rotating through the other departments of medicine, then 4th year is electives, Carms
(residency) applications, Carms interviews, graduating exam and then into residency after that.
Time is just flying- feels like it was just yesterday we were working at the front desk together.
Hope everyone else is doing well and look forward to hearing from you soon.”
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

FUTURE VENTURES COMMITTEE REPORT
The Future Ventures Committee has been working hard to plan a number of fundraising
events. We hope you will find time to support one (or more!) of these activities…
The first event of 2013 is the Art Sale on January 29th in combination with the Big Book Sale.
Many pieces have been donated and include original, signed art, limited numbered edition
prints and other unique pieces. Many are framed and all are very reasonably priced. The sales
will continue during the Big Book Sale days until all art is sold.
Join Joan and her Jolly Jewellers on February 7th for the last sale at 76 Grenville. Everything
must go! Joan Hill is taking gold and silver donations right up until the sale. Please contact her
if you have unwanted items collecting dust. She is happy to polish and peddle!
Next event is the Raffle Draw on February 14th. Raffle Ticket sales are going well although
there are still tickets remaining to be sold. Visit Sarah Lord’s office to sign out your book of ten
tickets. Sell to your neighbors, friends, family or mailman. Don’t let your contacts miss out on
the awesome prizes they can win for a mere $3 purchase. Awesome value!
Back by popular demand, a bake sale is planned for March 21st. There will be sign-up sheets
for help and donations in the volunteer lounge soon! We hope you will take part.
Theatre Night – join us for an evening of hilarious entertainment. One of the Broadway hits of
2012, Venus in Fur, is coming to the Bluma Appel theatre this October and promises to be the
comical hit of the Toronto theatre scene. Our reserved block of tickets go on sale soon and
will sell out quickly. Watch for the poster for date and purchasing info!
And one more event: we are finalizing the details on a Wine and Food Tasting event! Learn to
pair foods with wine and sate yourself at the same time. Stay tuned for more details in the
coming months. We hope you will join us for this casual and fun social event.
Of course the Future Ventures Committee would love to hear from you if you have an idea for
a fundraising event. Just drop me an email to discuss: malgie@sympatico.ca. Wishing you all
the best for 2013!
Shop Ankh First
THE ANKH GIFT SHOP is offering
up to 50 % discount on specially marked items, including winter wear
Look for the coloured dots
Yellow dot = 25% off the ticket price
Red dot = 50 % off the ticket price
Margot Algie, Fundraising Coordinator
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

NOVEMBER GENERAL MEETING
The November General Meeting was held on November 20, 2012.
Featured guest speaker, Dr. Valerie Taylor, Assistant Professor in
Psychiatric and Behavioural Neurosciences and Chief of Psychiatry at
WCH, gave an interesting talk on mood disorders. Other guests
included Heather McPherson, VP Patient Care and Ambulatory
Innovation and Dr. Paula Rochon, from WCRI.
Soup and dessert were served to accompany brown bag lunches.
.
Dr. Valerie Taylor
Betty Cullen, Joan Beard, Dianne Atay
BAKE SALES GALORE
Lois Hindmarsh, Edie Stein
Instead of the traditional Craft and Bake Sale in December, we tried something different this
fall. Three themed bake sales were held: Apples Galore in October, Chocolate Galore in
November and Holiday Treats Galore in December. This new approach was received with
much enthusiasm and the three bake sales brought in over $2,800! Thank you to the many
volunteers who baked, priced, wrapped, prepped and served at these events and also to
those who supported the sales. We couldn’t have done it without you.
Mary Lemaitre, Zina Solomun
Darleen Bogart
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

PHOTO GALLERY
Angus MacDonald, Angela Muto
Clarissa Wagner
Vicky Vine
Beth Zucchiatti, Minnie Pillipow
Darleen Bogart, Bea Chan, Zina Solomun, Caroline Grose
Gwen Acker
Dianne Atay and WCH Staff Nurse
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

IN MEMORIAM
We are sad to announce the passing of the following volunteers in the last few months.
All are fondly remembered by fellow volunteers who worked with them in past years.
These volunteers will be commemorated at the Annual General Meeting with an In Memoriam
picture that will be hung in the hospital.
Lita Hewitt (1927-October 2012) joined the Association of
Volunteers in 1992 where she began volunteering in Admitting and
later worked in the Ambulatory Care Centre. She served on the
Executive in the role of Social Convenor (1994-1996). During this
time she planned one of the most elegant Annual General Meetings
at the Latvian Centre. She also served in the role of
Communications Coordinator (1996-1998). Her competence,
reliability and attention to detail made her a wonderful volunteer.
Lita is best remembered by volunteers who knew her well for her
quiet manner and her incredible sense of style.
Flora Agnew (1927-November 2012) began volunteering with us
in 1998. She brought with her many years of experience as a
volunteer at the Red Cross and the AGO, and as the first woman
Chair of the Board of the Bishop Strachan School. She began in
the UCC Nursing Station, later called Urgent Care, where she
continued for 10 years. She then became part of the Information
Desk Team where she volunteered until this past summer. Flora
served in many positions on the Executive: Communications
Chairperson (2000-2003), Vice President (2004-2005), Recording
Secretary In Memoriam (2006-2007), Picture President (2007-2009) and Past President
and Foundation representative (2009-2012). She also found time
to chair committees, be part of the Book Group and take part in
sales. She was a vital part of the Walk for Women’s in which she
participated each year. She was totally involved in all aspects of
the Association of Volunteers. Her no-nonsense approach to life
contributed in every way to our organization and she is sorely
missed. She spent her last summer celebrating milestones at
Sturgeon Point with her family: 85 th birthday, 60 th anniversary and
100 years of the family cottage.
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

Carol Ann Robinson (1936-January 2013) joined the
Association of Volunteers in 1992. She volunteered on the
Information Desk and later at the Surgical Day Care
Information Desk. She served on the Executive in Public
Relations (1993/94), Vice President (1994/95), President
(1995/96) and Past President (1996-98) as well as
participating in sales and other events. Carol Ann used her
marketing and promotion background in establishing the Baby
Star Wall in 1997. During those years she focused on raising
the profile of the Association and demonstrating it’s value to
Women’s College Hospital.
Eve Cork (1925-January 2013) began volunteering in 1971.
In a Toronto Star article in 1985 she was one of 200
volunteers who gave over 44,000 hours of their time to
Women’s College Hospital. She chose to volunteer with
seriously ill patients with life threatening illnesses. She
undertook five weeks of special training including seminars
and group sessions on how to deal with special needs. She
worked in Palliative Care helping patients by listening,
helping with practical problems resulting from critical illness
and being a non-medical person who made them feel
human. It took a special person to be able to volunteer in this
area.
Heather MacGregor (1921- January 2013) began
volunteering with the Association of Volunteers in 2001.
Prior to that she was President of the TGH Hospital
Auxiliary. She worked in the Ankh Gift shop for many years
and also participated in various Association projects and
sales. Heather became our super saleswoman because
she spent many hours each year selling raffle tickets in the
lobby - no one could resist her charm.
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

Newsletter editor: Bea Chan
E-mail address for newsletter: darleen.bogart@wchospital.ca
Link for online edition:
http://www.womenscollegehospital.ca/associationofvolunteers
Contributors: Margot Algie, Darleen Bogart, Carolyn Bosley, Ruby Brett, Caroline Grose,
Sarah Lord, Elizabeth Scorey, Clarissa Wagner, Leonie Wizzard-Foster, WCH Prevention
and Control
Photos courtesy of: Ruby Brett, Sarah Lord, (photo of WCH building from Strategic
Communications via website)
Association of Volunteers, Women’s College Hospital,
76 Grenville Street, Toronto, ON M5S 1B2
Phone: 416-323-6180 • Fax: 416-323-7741 • Email: sarah.lord@wchospital.ca
NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013