Boyne Lodge Personal Care Home was awarded a Carman Area Foundation grant, and those funds are already earmarked for a bladder scanner for residents.
Boyne had identified the need, applied for and received the grant, and now they’re just working out the details for deciding which scanner would best suit their purposes.
Intent is for safer patient experience
The project involves purchasing a bladder scanner for Boyne Lodge PCH to provide a non‑invasive method of assessing urinary retention, particularly for residents living with dementia.
This equipment will improve resident comfort and safety, reduce unnecessary catheterizations and hospital visits, and support quicker diagnosis and treatment as part of holistic nursing care.
Boyne Lodge – photo supplied
Lisa Dales is the Manager, Health Services – Resident Care with Southern Health-Santé Sud, for Boyne Lodge PCH.
She shared an update by phone on the process to date, as well as her role there.
“I look after the nursing as a whole at Boyne Lodge, and ensure that all of our residents are getting all that they require.” Dales explained. “I also ensure that there are adequate and trained staff here to look after the residents.”
Need identified
In that capacity, there are inevitably situations that come up where care shortfalls or nice-to-have items are determined, which could improve day-to-day operational experiences for both residents and the caregivers.
“Yes, always.” Dales agreed. “One of those was a bladder scanner.
“We’re in the process of looking for one that works for what we need it for. We don’t need anything really, really high-tech because we’re a personal care home. Originally, I believe, our nurse practitioner had thought that this would be something we could use. After researching it, we have all agreed that is something that would benefit our residents here.”
Boyne Lodge – photo supplied
Process underway for some time
The purchase has been under consideration for some time already.
“It’s been at least a couple years that we thought that we have been looking into it, researching it.” Dales shared. “Our hope to find one so that you don’t have to move people.
“It isn’t something standardized in long-term care, that all long-term care sites would have. It’s an extra thing that we’re just fortunate that we have such a supportive community that will support us in becoming able to better care for our residents. We’re hoping it would reduce the amount of time our residents would have to be transferred to a hospital.”
The Carman Area Foundation grant for the scanner was $15,000.
“That is our estimate of what we believe it will cost after doing some research.” Dales confirmed. “That is what we got for the grant of $15,000.”
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Carman Area Foundation granting
With the need determined, that needed to be shared for the grant with CAF.
“Yes. so my manager had requested that I write-up a reason for why we would need it, and how it would benefit people. So, I did a little write-up and then she submitted it to the Carmen Area Foundation.
“There are a few options out there. So, we’re just trying to figure out what would be the best fit. Now that we have the money, we just need to narrow it down.”
Boyne Lodge – photo supplied
Once the decision is made and the device is in place, Boyne Lodge residents should experience less potential disruption.
“We hope to get it because it, as I said, it lessens the visit.” Dales shared. “It could lessen the visit to the hospital, decrease the stress to residents, hopefully resulting in a quicker diagnosis for them, quicker treatment. and it also lessens the risk of infection for residents.
“So, that’s the main reasons we are looking to get one.”
The Carman Area Foundation provides grants to a wide range of charitable groups – grants that benefit their local communities. Learn more from their website.
with files from Carman Area Foundation