BANFF – A splash of colour and fun have been added to the Banff Mineral Springs Hospital’s emergency department to ease the nerves of kids who might be going through a tough time.
Breaking the norm of a drab emergency room, the Smilezone Foundation have brightened up the pediatric and trauma rooms with art reflecting the vibrant life and iconic wildlife of the Alberta mountain town.
“It allows kids to focus on something else, rather than all of these new, strange things that are occurring,” said Chris de Vries, emergency department manager.
An ambulance also had a makeover with a mural on the roof with the scene of local flowers and birds.
“That’s the first ambulance we’ve done in all of Canada. So, it’s pretty special for us, because now we know we can do it,” said Scott Bachly, founder of the Smilezone Foundation. “Now we can maybe start doing more ambulances across the country, in smaller communities that don't have a lot of pediatric wards.”
In the pediatric and trauma rooms are scenes of mountain life, like skiing and camping, and animals painted by Ontario artist Sarah Carlson and her students on the freshly painted walls.
“In the first room, it has two bears that are camping with a tent. I think it’s very cute. It reminds me of when I was camping with my dog,” said de Vries.
De Vries added being in a traumatic environment, like the emergency department, can cause negative feelings toward health care but with the new colour it can help flip the narrative.
“It’s very traumatic to be in an environment like the hospital where you have all of these new procedures and lots of people coming at you with different instruments, pain, potentially,” he said.
“I think what this does is it helps address some of those broader issues that we as healthcare providers aren’t necessarily primarily focused with but are equally important for the long term.”
With more than 400 hospitals revamped by the Ontario foundation, Bachly not only hears stories of children being more comfortable in a scary situation because of their work but also from the hospital staff.
“They just say it makes a world of a difference the way they treat their kids,” he said. “They’re there, 24/7, the nurses and the technicians and the therapists, and they think it's just so much help with the kids.”
Smilezone started when Bachly and Adam Graves – Stanley Cup winner with the Edmonton Oilers and New York Rangers – wanted to contribute to their local hospital in Oakville, Ont.
“He said, ‘whatever we do, it has to be about children, to benefit the children,” said Bachly.
The transformation was made possible by donation from the Heersink family.
“Just looking at everything today, it was really nice to see how much more inviting it is,” said Jordan Heersink, who lives in Banff. “Obviously, hospitals can be quite scary for everyone, not just children.”
The foundation aims to redecorate 1,000 hospitals in the next five years and have every province under their belt, which Bachly said will be checked off soon as he will be heading to Prince Edward Island to get the ball rolling in their last province.
