Do Good Divas fund build of family lounge at hospital
Families of patients on the seventh floor of Windsor Regional Hospital’s Ouellette campus now have somewhere to linger other than the hallway, thanks to new lounge space made possible by the Do Good Divas.
The Divas and hospital officials unveiled the lounge to the media Tuesday.
The former storage area features a table and chairs, a couple of couches, a TV, a bed/ lounger and lots of wall plugs.
Gisele Seguin, the hospital’s director of public affairs, communications and philanthropy, said the seventh floor had no lounge area for families before the Divas stepped in.
A non-profit organization dedicated to supporting local healthcare projects, the Divas have refurbished approximately 10 lounges for Windsor Regional.
“The patient rooms at the Ouellette Campus are very small,” Seguin said. “If you have a number of family members visiting a patient they can end up taking turns in the room. A lounge offers some comfort for the family.”
Seguin noted it was hospital staff who inquired about transforming the storage space for the benefit of families.
“The lounges have really been one of our most successful projects in terms of the benefit to patients and families,” said Gale Simko-Hatfield, president of the Do Good Divas. They’ve really been well received.”
Over the past 12 years, the Divas have raised more than $500,000 for different health-care projects through their signature event, “A Girls Night out in Handbag Heaven.”
The 2018 Handbag Heaven event is set for Oct. 25 at the Caboto Club. Ticket information is available at www.dogooddivas.com. Simko-Hatfield announced that this year the Divas are pledging $50,000 from the event to sponsor a passenger van for the Unemployed Help Centre and another $10,000 to upgrade the hospital’s Ouellette campus waiting room for patients and families awaiting cataract surgery.
The lounges have really been one of our most successful projects in terms of the benefit to patients and families.