Jillian O’Connor was 18 weeks pregnant when she was diagnosed with breast cancer and given less than two years to live. In February, she celebrated the fourth birthday of her healthy baby boy and continues to live life to the fullest.

Change is in the air at The Ottawa Hospital. As we launch the Epic digital health network, we ask for your patience as we continue to learn the new system.

For many patients and families, spiritual practices can help manage the stress of time spent in hospital. For First Nations and Métis patients and families, these practices might include smudging ceremonies. The Ottawa Hospital now has a procedure in place to be able to respond to requests from patients and families for smudging ceremonies.

Lynne Miles suffered for three months with intense low back pain that affected many parts of her life. A referral to the Rapid Access Clinic for Low Back Pain at The Ottawa Hospital offered her a new, empowering approach to managing it.

For weeks, staff at the Ottawa Hospital have been transferring patient information from legacy systems into Epic, the new digital health network. This ‘cutover’ process helped ensure continued patient safety and care during the ‘once-in-a-generation’ transition.

With help from virtual reality, patients undergoing cancer treatment at The Ottawa Hospital could soon take a virtual getaway from their hospital beds. Engineering students consulted with patient advisors to design these high-tech escapes.

Hundreds of nurses across six health-care partners are leading the charge toward the launch of the Epic digital health network on June 1. Nurses share their expertise to help design, build, and test the new system, as well as train and support 18,000 other professionals as the hospital and five other health organizations prepare for a new era of care.

If a survivor chooses to come to the hospital after a sexual assault, she or he will be met by a compassionate team. That team will offer medical care and emotional support, and, if the survivor chooses, will complete a Sexual Assault Evidence Kit that can help prosecute the assailant.

Angie Hamson carried her son Charlie’s health information in a giant blue binder for years. Now through a secure, patient-centred application called MyChart, Angie and Charlie, and anyone else they choose, can see Charlie’s medical records digitally. Angie feels more empowered and Charlie can use a version of MyChart when he transitions to The Ottawa Hospital as an adult.

Technical skills are clearly part of a successful surgery, but what about ‘soft skills’ like leadership, communications and teamwork? The OR Black Box®, installed last summer at The Ottawa Hospital General Campus, is helping researchers collect important data that could help improve care not only in Ottawa, but around the world.

Everyone who volunteers at The Ottawa Hospital has a reason. For Brian Oliver, that reason was to pay tribute to the people who helped him and his wife, Elaine Oliver. In celebration of National Volunteer Week (April 7to 13), meet Brian, who has a warm smile and a sharing spirit.

Iuliana Popescu came to Canada from Romania in 2002, and began working in the Human Resources Department at The Ottawa Hospital five years later. No matter where her travels took her, she always felt a sense of belonging here. The Ottawa Hospital was recently recognized for helping new Canadians like Iuliana find meaningful employment.