The Hospital for Sick Children

Today on SickKids' TV channel The SKOOP, our regularly scheduled BINGO game was Black History and Futures Month-themed.   Each square offered a chance to learn more about Black history, from featuring cultural events like Caribana – North America's largest celebration of Caribbean culture – to notable figures like Viola Desmond, a civil rights icon who challenged racial segregation in Nova Scotia.   Thank you to Child Life Specialists for organizing such a meaningful experience and thank you to Chantaé and Laurel from SickKids Foundation for joining the broadcast!

💕Of course there were heart-themed crafts today...   Happy Valentine's Day from SickKids!❤️

Even when Toronto is covered in snow and at a standstill, staff across SickKids rally to ensure quality care for patients and families continues uninterrupted! From the facilities team overseeing snow removal on the helipad and the ground, to healthcare workers trekking through 20+ centimetres of snow to get to work, we can't thank Team SickKids enough. Thank you for always going above and beyond for patients, families, and colleagues. 

Meet Suud Nahdi, a first year resident physician at SickKids.   As a resident doctor, Suud is a medical school graduate and doctor in training. He provides direct patient care under the supervision of a staff physician. Suud updates patient charts, participates in clinical rounds and provides care that ranes from from checking in on patients on the unit to performing additional clinical tasks, like lumbar puncture or ordering and prescribing medication. SickKids relies on the hard work of resident physicians as part of the incredible teams providing quality care to patients and families, as we help train the next generation!   Happy Resident Appreciation Week to Suud and colleagues!

This year for #WomenInScience Day, we’re celebrating some of the incredible SickKids staff members advancing clinical research at SickKids! Whether they’re conducting research or ensuring the safety of clinical trials, the diverse expertise of these women is helping shape the future of paediatric health care here, and around the world. Meet some of the women making a difference in clinical research at SickKids 🔬 ➡️ https://bit.ly/4hQiT3D #IDWGS

It was at a routine pre-natal scan that Amy Zubick learned her third child had a congenital heart defect (CHD) that would require life-saving surgery at SickKids within days of being born. "I went from being a parent of healthy kids to feeling completely isolated from my community because nobody knew what I was going through," Amy recalls of the pregnancy and birth of her son Isaiah, who is now eight years old and living a healthy life while regularly checking in with the cardiology team at SickKids. Back then, she turned to online communities for caregivers of children with CHDs, including a mother who blogged about her hospital experience. "She lit the way for me," Amy says, adding that it helped her get through Isaiah's open heart surgery when he was two days old. “I always wished I could do for other families what that mom did for me.” Today, that's exactly what she's doing as the Parent Liaison for SickKids' Cardiac Critical Care and Paediatric Intensive Care Units. In this role, she connects with families through shared experience, not only by lending an ear, but also providing simple things like touring them around the unit to ensure they know about resources like the family rest area and stocking a pantry to make sure they’ve eaten. She also organizes activities like a photo storyboard craft time, where families can print pictures of their children – often for the first time. While research shows peer support works, it's something Amy witnesses every day. "I can see their shoulders relax when I tell them who I am," she says. "It's just offering that feeling that someone relates to them." Most recently, Amy worked with fellow caregivers of children with a heart condition to create a video series sharing their experiences and lessons learned along the way – peer support that can be accessed any time. Watch the videos here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/gV8tWcG8 

Are you a Black or Indigenous nursing student interested in becoming a paediatric acute care nurse? As part of our commitment to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, SickKids is offering a $5,000 academic bursary for Black and Indigenous nursing students in their final year of undergraduate academic study during the 2025–2026 academic year. To learn more about these awards, join the upcoming information session: 🗓️ Tuesday, February 25, 2025 🕒 3pm 📍Virtual Register here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/g9mt6qqm

The Canadian Platform for AI in Health is an exciting new collaboration that seeks to improve patient outcomes by establishing a national (and international) AI infrastructure for #genomics and health. With this infrastructure, #SKResearch will continue to investigate the causes of rare genetic conditions and identify new avenues for treatment with the support of cutting-edge #AI models.

A new study led by Dr. Peter Dirks and first author Dr. Kinjal Desai has revealed a critical event driving tumour growth in a type of #medulloblastoma – and presents a novel strategy to halt it before it forms.  The #SKResearch, published by Nature Portfolio on #WorldCancerDay, shows that targeting the OLIG2 protein can successfully prevent tumour recurrence and increase survival rates in preclinical models of sonic hedgehog (SHH) medulloblastoma. Together with complementary study also published today by colleagues at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, the findings showcase what could be an effective new treatment for SHH medulloblastoma, as well as other types of #BrainCancer. Read ➡️ https://lnkd.in/gbgndW8N

February is Black History and Futures Month, a time to reflect on the past, celebrate Black excellence and look toward the future.      At SickKids, we’re marking the month with a lineup of events, exhibits and activities for both patients and staff that honour Black voices, history and culture, like ⬇️    ➡️ Story time, held in the Family Centre and broadcast to SickKids TV channel, The SKOOP, featuring Black authors and voices.     ➡️ Using Photovoice—a powerful visual storytelling method—showcasing personal and professional experiences through photography. This exhibit captures the perspectives of Black staff at SickKids, offering a window into their lived realities, strengths, and excellence.      ➡️ Patient and family trivia games (in person and broadcast to SickKids TV channel, The SKOOP) spotlighting notable Black Canadians.     ➡️ Colouring pages that celebrate Black figures available throughout in-patient and out-patient clinics.     ➡️ Tasty recipes from the African diaspora as featured menu items at the hospital’s Terrace Café all month long.     Whether it’s through art, food, music, or conversation, we're ready to learn and celebrate.    Thank you to the Black History and Futures Month Planning Committee, and the #BlackinSKF Inclusion Group at SickKids Foundation for making this all happen!