Image: Supplied / Sandra Schmirler Foundation Board members & Family members Tara Popil, Hughene Day and Sandra Schmirler’s daughters Sara and Jenna England Guy Mercier, RIH Foundation Donor (Rita C. Mercier Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) RIH NICU/Maternity Staff: Teressa Allwood & Dara Johnson RIH Foundation: Shanah Skjeie & Marcy Matthew

By CFJC Today Staff

NICU Unit

Sandra Schmirler Foundation donates $70 thousand to support specialized care for babies in Kamloops

Feb 20, 2023 | 12:25 PM

KAMLOOPS — The Sandra Schmirler Foundation has donated $70,000 to the Royal Inland Hospital (RIH) Foundation to support the Rita C. Mercier Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).

The Sandra Schmirler Foundation was created in honour of Sandra Schmirler, a world curling champion and Olympic gold medallist, and has raised over $7 million to purchase life-saving equipment for premature and critically ill babies in hospitals across Canada.

The hospital’s NICU provides specialized care to families across the region. Babies as young as 30 weeks visit the NICU for many health reasons including low birth weight, difficulty breathing or infection.

“Caring for small, premature and critically ill babies requires an extensive amount of highly specialized equipment that we may not have access to without this support,” said Ashley Watson, RIH NICU Clinical Practice Educator.

The Sandra Schmirler Foundation’s donation will go towards purchasing equipment such as bedside fetal monitors, bassinettes, and Giraffe Shuttles to support the care of these vulnerable patients.

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“We are truly honoured that the Sandra Schmirler Foundation has chosen us to be the recipient of their generous gift of $70,000,” said RIH Foundation CEO, Heidi Coleman. “These funds will help us ensure that the highly skilled NICU team of physicians, nurses and allied health professionals have the equipment they need to deliver exceptional care to every newborn they treat.”

The Sandra Schmirler Foundation was created in honour of Sandra Schmirler, a world curling champion and Olympic gold medallist. It has raised over $7 million to purchase life-saving equipment for premature and critically ill babies in hospitals across Canada. Every year, at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the organization provides a grant to a local hospital to purchase life-saving equipment for their NICU.