NEWS RELEASE
SOUTHLAKE REGIONAL HEALTH CENTRE FOUNDATION
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In April, Canadian Pacific (CP), through its community investment program CP Has Heart, announced it will be supporting pediatric cardiology care at Southlake Regional Health Centre, as well as SickKids, through the upcoming 2019 CP Women’s Open. Now it’s fast approaching, and Southlake Foundation is gearing up for the big event.
As the chosen charity within York Region, the host community of the tournament, Southlake Foundation is pleased to accept this donation of $250,000 to support leading-edge pediatric cardiac care close to home for some of Southlake’s youngest patients and their families.
“In our five years as title sponsor, we’ve made it a priority to support children’s heart health in Canada,” says James Clements, CP VP Strategic Planning and Transportation Services. “CP is particularly proud to be supporting Southlake Foundation through the tournament this year. We felt it was important to give back to the community hosting the event through Southlake, a hospital doing incredible work to advance the pediatric cardiology care they offer to children in their communities.”
This generous CP gift will support a new echocardiogram with specialized pediatric probes. This advanced equipment uses ultrasound technology to map images of the heart and will enable Southlake’s expert clinical teams to diagnose and monitor heart conditions for young patients right here at our hospital.
This equipment will be beneficial for patients like 10-year-old Jack who, in April, was diagnosed with a rare heart condition called long QT syndrome (LQTS). Suddenly feeling unwell, he collapsed into his mother’s arms, unconscious.
She immediately called 911, but Jack regained consciousness after seven seconds — the longest seven seconds of her life. On route to the hospital, it happened again.
What they later learned was that Jack’s heart was beating irregularly, pumping the blood out of his heart faster than it was pumping it back in. The serious condition causes rapid and irregular heartbeats, which can lead to sudden fainting or seizures.
At Southlake, Jack bypassed the Emergency Department and was taken directly to the cardiac unit for testing. “There was always someone in the room with us,” says Kelly, Jack’s mother. “They talked us through every step and kept us really calm. It all happened very quickly.”
Southlake didn’t have the technology to perform all the tests that Jack needed to properly diagnose his condition, but the expert team caring for him knew that what had happened to him was potentially very serious. Working closely with their partners at SickKids, they transferred Jack to the downtown hospital for further testing and a definitive diagnosis.
“If Southlake hadn’t handled it that way, we might have gone home thinking he had just fainted,” says Kelly. “But because of their expertise and attentiveness, Jack is getting the help he needs.”
Hundreds of kids like Jack come to Southlake every year with symptoms of serious heart conditions. Support from the CP Women’s Open will help equip Southlake with more advanced technology, giving our teams the tools they need to provide more paediatric cardiac care than ever before.
“We are honoured to be recognized by CP as an important provider of pediatric cardiac care in York Region,” says Susan Mullin, President & CEO of Southlake Foundation. “This kind of support enables us to grow and expand the services we offer, meaning that we can better shift our focus to meet the needs of our communities and be able to provide the care they need closer to home.”
Southlake is home to the fourth largest regional cardiac care program in Ontario and provides more than 10,000 patients every year with advanced critical and urgent cardiac care across York Region, South Simcoe County, and as far north as Muskoka.
The CP Women’s Open takes place Aug. 19 to 25 at the Magna Golf Club in Aurora. For more information, visit www.cpwomensopen.com.
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