Officials with the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) recently showcased new quiet rooms in the hospital’s inpatient psychiatry unit.
The rooms will provide a therapeutic space for patients where outside stimulus and exterior stressors are eliminated. The rooms are designed with features that ensure patient and staff safety, officials said.
“We’re pleased to offer modern, refreshed quiet rooms in the inpatient psychiatry unit. This project aligns with our strategic plan and specifically speaks to our goal to reduce preventable harm through a focus on increased risk management and safety,” Lori Marshall, president and CEO of CKHA said in a media release. “Along with our new withdrawal management service and co-located Rapid Access to Addiction Medicine Clinic, we continue to make significant strides in regards to quality mental health and addiction services in our community.”
The construction of the quiet rooms in a new area on the unit will provide better visibility to monitor the occupants of each room, improving security and safety for both patients and staff.
The two enhanced rooms each contain a bedroom with one shared anteroom, controlled entry and a shared washroom space.
Each room has safety walls and floor to help ensure a safer environment for patients, protecting them from injury.
The project was made possible thanks to significant support from local donors and organizations, enabled by CKHA Foundation (CKHAF). This support included a $10,000 grant from the Chatham Kent Community Foundation, an additional $10,000 donation from an anonymous donor, as well as a total of $63,579.32 in funds raised through the Music for the Mind community events.
“Our donors and community members have shown that they recognize the pressing need for enhanced mental health services here in our community, and we are so grateful for the significant financial support that we have received for our mental health and addictions program over the past couple of years,” said Christine Mitchell, president and CEO, CKHA Foundation.
“The safety and wellbeing of patients on the inpatient psychiatry unit has always been near and dear to my heart, so it means a lot to me that funds raised through Music for the Mind have made this project possible,” said Elisha Banks, founder and organizer of the Music for the Mind fundraiser.
Additional funding for this project was received from CKHA’s capital budget and the provincial Health Infrastructure Renewal Fund (HIRF).
Are you serious right now? Your systems are still down patients are not getting the care they need and your spending money on a quiet room. Pathetic. Get your priorities straight. Useless hospital. No wonder everyone rather travel out of the city to get medical care. Very disappointing.