After experiencing abdominal pain and a fever for several days, a visit to a doctor sent Thomas Wachowski straight to Delta Hospital.
“Four hours later, I had surgery for a ruptured appendix. The surgeon told my wife that if I’d waited another day, it would not have gone well for me,” Thomas says.
Surgeries like Thomas’s emergency appendectomy are among the many performed daily in Delta Hospital’s busy Surgical Services Department.
While most of the procedures performed at Delta Hospital are scheduled surgeries, every single procedure is vitally important.
From general surgeries such as orthopaedic and gynecological to cancer-related surgeries, the procedures the medical team provides improve people’s lives. And in cases like Thomas’, they save lives, says Dr. Dan Robibo, General Surgeon and Department Head of Surgery at Delta Hospital.
“Since joining the hospital in 2002, I’ve seen our Surgical Services Department expand and evolve to meet the needs of Delta’s growing population. As the demand increases, we continue to add more surgical services and more surgeons to our team,” Dr. Robibo says.
The Surgical Daycare Unit is one of the busiest day surgery sites in the Fraser Health region, with more than 7,900 surgeries performed every year in the hospital’s three operating Rooms and approximately 3,500 endoscopies in our Endoscopy Suite.
Providing this wide range of day surgeries here in Delta means patients don’t have to travel to other facilities, where they’d often be placed on long wait lists. Here, patients are close to home, and close to their families which improves their experience and ultimately strengthens our community’s overall health.
Reliable, state-of-the-art equipment is vital
“Maintaining a high patient flow depends not only on skilled staff, but also having reliable, state-of-the-art equipment. Many of the tools we use on a daily basis need to be replaced or upgraded so our healthcare professionals can continue to provide excellent healthcare to our patients,” Dr. Robibo explains, noting that over time, laparascope fibres break, monitors become outdated, probes and infusion pumps can stop working. Plus, all equipment must be fully sterilized after every use, and this can affect their longevity.
The items included on the Surgical Services Equipment List will provide surgical teams more advanced technology and better imaging, allowing them to deliver care more efficiently and often less invasively – providing patients like Thomas with the best surgical outcomes through state-of-the-art technology.
“Your generosity will help ensure that you, your family and your neighbours have access to excellent surgical care when you need it.”
To support exceptional care at your community hospital, donate online today at dhchfoundation.ca
