Legion Ladies Auxiliary’s efforts result in purchase of longer hospital bed for taller patients

Tim Brody - Editor

Thanks to the efforts of the Legion Ladies Auxiliary and everyone who supported them, a new bed has been purchased through the Sioux Lookout Meno Ya Win Health Centre (SLMHC) Foundation to make hospital stays more comfortable for taller patients.
Legion Ladies Auxiliary President Charron Sippola shared, “My husband was in the hospital for seven weeks. Sandra’s husband was in and out of the hospital.”
Legion Ladies Auxiliary Treasurer Sandra Lockhart added, “Both of our husbands were in there at the same time. Both were experiencing much discomfort because the footboard, which they wanted them to have on… it made it so uncomfortable they weren’t sleeping.”
Sippola’s husband Warren is 6’4” in height. Lockhart’s late husband Howard stood 6’5”.
The Sioux Lookout Meno Ya Win Health Centre’s current Stryker Acute beds cannot be extended and are 7’ in length.
This Procuity bed can extend to 8’ with the bed foot extender mattress or be kept at the normal length of 7’.  This bed is also 42” wide compared to 41”.
 SLMHC informed, “The ProCuity bed also can be lowered very low to 11.5” compared to our current which range between 14” and 16”.  Weight capacity on the Procuity is 650lb.  The bed also has an integrated scale and bed chaperone exit alarm system that connects to the nurse call system alerting staff if someone is leaving their bed who may be a falls risk patient.”
Sippola said following her husband’s stay at the hospital, she brought up the idea of purchasing a longer bed to the Legion Ladies Auxiliary.
“Let’s make that our goal,” she said. “We’ll buy the bed. Didn’t know how much it (will) cost. I did find out how much it cost - it was like $9000 plus… So, between chili take outs and bingo and two raffles, it worked out. We got the money.”
“When Howard passed away, I asked for donations to be made in his honour and almost $2000 was raised that way. People donated directly to the hospital foundation,” Lockhart said.
The fundraising campaign to purchase the new longer hospital bed began last May and the required funds were raised by the end of November.
“It worked out well. The community seemed to support us,” Sippola said. “Now that it’s here, I’m excited,” she shared, wishing to thank everyone who helped make the new longer hospital bed a reality, “The Legion helped us, the community helped us.”