From donor to patient: how care at WRHN sparked a new appreciation for community generosity
She Shares Member / Patient Spotlight
From donor to patient: how care at WRHN sparked a new appreciation for community generosity
She Shares Member / Patient Spotlight
When Connie Deckert found out something was wrong with her heart, her family doctor gave her a choice: she could be referred to the cardiac centre in London, or the one in Kitchener.
Both were about the same distance from Connie’s Stratford home. But the decision was an easy one – and it had little to do with geography.
“I said I’m going to WRHN; I didn’t have to think about it,” says Connie. “That’s nothing against London, but there’s just no way I wanted to get cardiac care anywhere other than WRHN.”
As an original member of WRHN Foundation’s She Shares Women’s Giving Circle and longtime WRHN donor, Connie was well aware of the cardiac excellence at WRHN @ Queen’s Blvd., formerly St. Mary’s General Hospital.
Just one month before the routine check-up that revealed her heart issue, Connie and the other 100 women of She Shares heard a presentation from WRHN’s cardiac director Al Qahwash, and were moved to fund a mobile electrocardiogram (EKG) for the hospital.
A similar EKG machine at a Stratford clinic initially alerted Connie to her heart issue – giving her an unexpected first-hand look at the type of equipment she had just helped fund.
Follow-up tests showed enough calcium buildup on Connie’s aortic valve that it needed to be replaced.
“It was a shock to hear that, for sure,” says Connie, who didn’t have any suspicious symptoms leading up to her appointment.
Heart disease was the last thing on my mind.
Connie was quickly referred to cardiologist Dr. Hahn Hoe Kim and cardiac surgeon Dr. Jennifer Higgins at WRHN @ Queen’s Blvd., to outline her options.
Driving to IKEA later that day with her wife, Connie made the decision to have the valve replaced with open heart surgery. Dr. Higgins performed the three-hour procedure a few weeks later.
Within months, Connie was back to her usual self, teaching and playing golf and enjoying life.
She credits the attentive, patient-centred care at WRHN @ Queen’s Blvd., for that.
“I immediately relaxed when I met Dr. Higgins at the first consultation,” Connie says. “I could just tell she was first class and she was going to fix this issue for me.
I didn’t ever expect to be in that situation, but I’m glad Dr. Higgins was there to guide me through it.
The experience gave Connie a new appreciation for the life-saving care she’s helped fund over the years as a She Shares member.
In 2018, Connie and four other women responded to an email from then foundation CEO Susan Dusick, who wanted help starting a giving circle. The five women gathered shortly after for the first She Shares meeting.
Since then, the group has grown from five to more than 100 members, including community leaders, business owners, and generations of women working together to elevate healthcare across WRHN’s sites.
Each year, the women gather to hear presentations from hospital team members outlining priority needs within their departments. They then vote on which pieces of equipment to fund with their membership fees.
In total, She Shares has raised $530,000 for equipment and program needs at WRHN, including two EKG carts funded last November.
For Connie, seeing She Shares surpass the $500,000 milestone was monumental.
“We’re proud, and it’s a team effort all the way,” she says. “With the team we’ve got and new women joining each year, we know we can keep doing more."
After experiencing care at WRHN firsthand, I can understand more than ever why She Shares is so important – and I’m honoured to be part of this group.
Want to learn more?
She Shares is a circle of like-minded women who, together, are making a real impact on the health of the community - by directly investing in local healthcare at Waterloo Regional Health Network (WRHN).
Let your experience inspire others.
Whether you’re a patient, family member, donor, event participant or proud WRHN staff, sharing your story and connection to Waterloo Regional Health Network (WRHN) is a powerful way to show how donations impact our community in real, tangible ways.
