Southland Hospital Children’s Services received a massive $87,829 from the Countdown Kids Hospital Appeal on Thursday 7 December, following a three-month fundraising effort from Countdown staff, customers and suppliers around the country.
The funds were handed over Thursday 7 December Morning during a cheque presentation at Countdown Tay Street in Invercargill attended by Countdown and Southern DHB staff and the local child ambassador for the appeal, Alyssa Orr.
Alyssa has been a regular patient at Southland Hospital’s Children’s Ward with respiratory illnesses since she was a baby.
In 2015 Alyssa had a life-threatening episode of asthma and ended up in the Critical Care Unit. She was transferred back to the children’s ward to Room 5, a room that thanks to Countdown Kids Hospital Appeal has been created into a high dependency room where children are cared for in a child-friendly environment.
“As parents, we’re really appreciative of the Countdown Kids Hospital Appeal. The money raised means that Alyssa and children like her benefit from the equipment purchased. It improves their stay in hospital and helps them recover,” said Alyssa’s parents Jeff and Julz.
The money raised will go towards purchasing items for the children’s and neonatal intensive care units at Southland Hospital. Items on this year’s wish list include an apnoea monitor and software, an I-stat blood analyser and a giraffe phototherapy light.
Clinical Nurse Manager, Paediatrics at Southland Hospital, Marie Irvine said the donation was fantastic.
“The service is delighted and very grateful that Southland has again been chosen as a recipient of the fundraising venture. The efforts of the fundraisers have been outstanding, we can’t thank the generosity of Countdown staff, our own staff and the public enough. The donation will go a long way to help purchase the items on our wish list.”
The Appeal is Countdown’s annual national fundraising activity to raise money to support the purchase of additional equipment for 11 hospitals across New Zealand. Hundreds of fundraising events, organised by Countdown team members, suppliers and district health boards, were held over three months between August and October. Locally, these included selling raffle ticket, cheese roll sales and a quiz night.
Celebrating its 11th anniversary, the Countdown Kids Hospital Appeal has raised $723,829 for Southland since it began through country-wide fundraising activities. Throughout New Zealand the appeal has raised $1.26 million in 2017 and $11.6 million overall during its 11 years.