Doctors at Royal Columbian Hospital will soon have new equipment to help seriously ill COVID-19 patients breathe, thanks to a sizeable donation from Burnaby firefighters.
The Burnaby Firefighters Charitable Society recently cut the New Westminster hospital a $31,411.42 cheque for the purchase of three GlideScopes, devices that provide a consistently clear view of a critically sick patient’s windpipe and allow for quick intubation to assist with breathing.
“We are in these unprecedented times, and our members saw an opportunity to help,” said Jeff Clark, president of the Burnaby Firefighters Association. “While they can’t be hands on, they can provide an instrument to help with safety precautions. They were all in.”
Royal Columbian is one of three hospitals within Fraser Health that have been designated primary COVID sites, and the RCH Hospital Foundation has created a COVID-19 response fund to meet the various needs of the hospital during the pandemic.
Foundation president and CEO Jeff Norris said his organization is working closely with the hospital to identify and meet needs as they arise.
The GlideScopes were among those.
“This will allow our hospital team to safely intubate patients outside of the emergency department and ICU, while creating extra distance from the patient to decrease the risk of infection,” Norris said in a press release.
