Ajax-Pickering hospital gets equipment for nursery
Jun 30, 2009 - 02:38 PM
By Kristen Calis
AJAX -- Ajax-Pickering hospital staff members were thrilled to get a piece of equipment last week they've long been living without.
"I think we were without a transport incubator for almost two years so we were delighted to have this added to our team," said Susan Fyfe, Rouge Valley Health System program director for women's and children's programs.
Pickering Mayor Dave Ryan presented a new state-of-the-art transport incubator to the labour and delivery unit at Rouge Valley Ajax and Pickering hospital Thursday. It's used when a stable premature or low-birth weight baby has to be relocated. About 1,600 babies are delivered at RVAP a year, Ms. Fyfe said, and those under 34 weeks at the time of birth must be transferred to a hospital that specialize in preemies.
The apparatus, like a self-contained neonatal intensive care unit on wheels that can be transported in either an ambulance or a helicopter, maintains an environment of controlled temperature, humidity and oxygen concentration for the baby. The light-weight plastic apparatus has a large door and portholes for easy access to the infant.
"It's an exciting opportunity for us and for the babies we have here," Ms. Fyfe said.
RVAP had a transport incubator in the past, but it came to a point where it couldn't be fastened in an ambulance anymore and hospital staff had to rely on other hospitals to help transfer the preemies.
Mayor Ryan was pleased to donate to the newborn unit, especially since his newest grandchild was born at RVAP in April.
"I now have a personal stake in this hospital," he said.
The apparatus cost $42,000 and the transport frame was an extra $7,000. The incubator was purchased with money raised at the Fourth Annual Mayor's Gala, which raises money for the Rouge Valley Health System Foundation each year, along with different organizations each time. This year's event accumulated $130,000, totalling about $430,000 since the gala's inception.
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