Frontline workers were feeling the love Friday.
Celebrations started at Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital (OSMH), where police, firefighters and paramedics paraded past in a salute to health-care workers.
The hospital also provided a barbecue lunch and, later, had an ice cream truck brought into the OSMH Foundation parking lot to provide free treats to workers.
“This is such a great experience. It feels really good to be appreciated,” said Marnie Newbery, who works in admitting and is fulfilling a temporary role at the COVID-19 testing centre.
The pandemic has “been tough” for her and other workers, she said.
“Seeing the nurses burnt out is frustrating,” Newbery said, adding that frustration is also felt toward those who deny COVID-19 is real or downplay its effects. “That’s tough, too, because you know the science is there.”
For Colleen Marshall, a registered nurse and a discharge planner who has worked at OSMH for more than 30 years, working through the pandemic has been “intense.”
“Stress levels are super high. People are getting extremely burnt out to the point where staff are calling in sick and staff are moving on to other things. We’re really struggling,” she said.
The gestures shown Friday were welcome, Marshall added.
“We felt appreciated today. Every little ‘thank you’ means something,” she said. “It doesn’t fix the problem, but it does boost your morale and make you feel appreciated.”
That was the goal, said OSMH president and CEO Carmine Stumpo.
“We’re trying to do as many things as we can to support our staff. It’s an incredibly busy time,” he said.
With the fourth wave of the pandemic here, now is as good a time as any to show appreciation.
“We also know our community really appreciates them and we appreciate the community,” he said.
The celebration of frontline workers spilled into downtown Orillia for the See You on the Patio event, which, this week, was dedicated to them. Many of the workers were noticeable in their purple shirts.
The hospital and the OSMH Foundation teamed with the Downtown Orillia Management Board to make the event a special one.
“It speaks a lot to connectedness, which is a word we’re learning to use more and more,” said Debbie Singh, chief human resources officer at OSMH. “Something as simple as this, to say thank you, goes a long, long way.”
“The current staff complement is really working full-out and they need a little treat, a little recognition, a little celebration,” added Mark Riczu, executive director of the OSMH Foundation. “It’s been a really, really long haul in this pandemic.”
Those who were downtown Friday were encouraged to sign a mural to express appreciation for frontline workers. The large canvas will be displayed in the Orillia Recreation Centre.
The mural was created by artist Natalie Very B.
“I feel so special to be a part of Orillia,” she said, noting she created a large mural in Toronto in the early days of the pandemic.
She hopes the mural will show frontline workers how valuable the community thinks they are.
“I really hope that they are able to, first of all, see themselves mirrored in this mural and, secondly, to see all these amazing people — children and adults — signing and showing respect and gratitude for their work during COVID and beyond,” she said.
