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Price tag of a new hospital bed starts at $10,000 or more dollar-for-dollar. The event was started by former Scotiabank president and hospital foundation board member, the late Bruce Birmingham, when he became aware of the need for new hospital beds at Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. He got the other Oakville banks on board, and the first bed race took place in April of 2006. Funds raised at the event go towards the purchase of hospital beds. The hospital has hundreds of beds, which are vital to providing effective care to patients, said Cathy Goacher, who represented the clinical staff of the hospital at the kick-off event. "They're (beds) just a huge help Continued from page 1 7 · Friday, March 30, 2012 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com to us in the work that we do and we really do appreciate this (bank bed challenge)," she said. There are a number of advantages to having newer beds in hospitals, she said, which start at the price of $10,000 and can go up in cost from there. "The newer beds have built-in pressure relief," Goacher said. "We're doing a lot of work to try to protect the skin and prevent wounds on our patients. There are different zones in the beds that change based on pressure." There are also alarms that notify staff when patients begin to rise out of bed, should they need to intervene. The beds allow hospital work- NIKKI WESLEY / OAKVILLE BEAVER / @halton_photog bank race: From left to right, RBC Community Manager Gareth Hales, HSBC Premier Relationship Manager Patrick Keyser, branch managers Danielle Zeran (BMO) and Brian Wood (TD), Scotiabank Manager Kerith McLeod and CIBC Branch Manager Aaron Addison. ers to measure the weight of patients with mobility issues. There are also extenders on the beds to accommodate very tall patients. "They're really adjustable, totally electronic," she said. "Patients have a lot more control. I remember when I first started nursing, the crank-up beds. Patients in bed were sort of at the mercy of somebody to come in and manually adjust that bed for them. Now they can do that independently." The new beds are also important for staff, she said because as beds age they become difficult to move through the hospital. "The average age of our clinical staff is going up, so to have these See Police page 10 DO YOGA· Focus · Strength · Balance · Breath APRIL SPECIALS It Fits Your Life EXPRESS CLASS PASS 12 Classes 1 Year Membership Regularly $1300 ( + HST ) 50% OFF NOW ONLY $650 ONLY $90 6am & 12noon 45 min, Mon-Fri Unlimited Classes (Introductory Offer) 30 DAYS FOR $25 Less Than a $1 a Day 131 Kerr Street (at John) 905-845-YOGA (9642) somelikeithot.ca We sell the most homes in Canada. Let us help you sell yours. www.remaxaboutowne.com Helping you stay on your path to Wellness · Some Like It Hot Yoga & Wellness Studio Aboutowne Reality Corp., Brokerage 905-338-9000 (Downtown Office) 905-842-7000 (Uptown Office) Independently owned and operated.