A gift of life for Ottawa firefighters

In February 2007, a house fire in Ottawa’s west end turned near deadly for five firefighters. They were rushed to The Ottawa Hospital’s Civic Campus emergency department—the designated trauma centre in our region. Kathy Slattery, an ER nurse, shares her story about that afternoon:

“The ER nurses heard the paramedics getting the call that there was a major house fire in progress. Ambulances were dispatched to the scene.

We received a total of five firefighters here, three of whom needed to be treated in the Trauma/Resuscitation Unit. We used all our new trauma equipment, including a Level 1 blood/fluid warmer, which rapidly warms fluids so they can be safely and quickly delivered into a patient’s bloodstream. It was -25 degrees that day and firefighters always get soaking wet from the hoses. You can imagine how cold their bodies were when they arrived here. They needed the warmed fluids that this machine provides.

We have the best equipment because our community supports the lifesaving work of our medical staff.”

Thanks to generous community support for the Civic Campus ER expansion project, these firefighters received the very best care possible. As you just read, our health care professionals are so grateful for the new equipment and facilities made possible by community donations.