Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation

The Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation proudly hosted several members of second-time donors MHCare Medical to provide an up-close look at the equipment their latest gift helped fund, building on a steadily growing partnership that began just two short years ago.

MHCare Medical recently donated $110,000 to the Foundation, which went toward the purchase of four new portable ultrasound machines to support the Royal Alexandra Hospital’s medicine department. These portable devices can be used for guided intravenous (IV) insertion for patients with difficult IV starts. The machines help improve accuracy and minimize time spent initiating IVs, which also reduces delays in patient treatment.

This spring, the MHCare Medical team stopped by the hospital, joining several Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation team members and local media, to see the new equipment in action and better understand how it will improve patient care and comfort for many years to come.

Founder and CEO Sam Mraiche recalled his father’s experience at the Royal Alexandra Hospital and how the equipment may have helped. It was back in 2021, when pandemic restrictions were in place.

“It was heart-wrenching to leave your loved ones alone, and the language barrier made it even more difficult,” recalled Mraiche. “The ultrasound IV may have helped my father’s discomfort and the discomfort of many patients.”

The equipment can also be used for training and educating healthcare professionals. Members of the MHCare Medical team noted the impact this would have for both the patient and practitioner.

“When hospital care or treatment is required, the smallest nuances to make that experience as best as possible are so important for the individual’s physical and mental health and the same goes for that of the care providers,” said Blayne Iskiw, MHCare Medical’s executive vice president. “MHCare being able to support that best possible experience aligns with the ethos of our organization.”

This latest donation builds on the generosity of MHCare Medical. A previous donation of $100,000 went to the hospital’s respiratory care unit—including the purchase of an ultrasound-guided IV device—as well as the Patient and Provider Experience Office, a unique department focused on continually enhancing the experience of patients as well as their care providers.

Mraiche indicated it is his way of giving back. “The Royal Alexandra Hospital took my father in and treated him like family,” he said. “The care they gave him and the other patients shows that the hospital is a world-class facility.”

The Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation gratefully acknowledges the generosity and vision of Sam Mraiche and MHCare Medical to improve patient care and comfort as well as efficiency and innovation.
“It is incredibly rewarding to see, firsthand, how our growing partnership can truly make a difference in the lives of the many patients our hospital serves, and the care they receive here,” said Morrel Wax, vice president of fund development and stakeholder engagement at the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation. “Technology is crucial to advancing healthcare and donations from community-focused organizations like MHCare Medical are crucial to bringing in that technology.”

MHCare Medical indicates this may be just the beginning.

“It’s gratifying to be able to support one of the first hospitals established in Edmonton and to be able to contribute to the advancement in tools and technology which helps the hospital provide improved patient care,” stated Imen Haymour, MHCare Medical vice president. “We are excited and looking forward to the growing relationship with the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation.”

The Foundation is similarly eager to see what opportunities this growing partnership presents in improving the health of Albertans and all those who seek care on the campus of the Royal Alexandra Hospital.

 

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