Investing in Staff Wellness to Improve Patient Care at ACCESS Fort Garry

These days at ACCESS Fort Garry the staff are happier and more productive than ever. The reason for this can be attributed to a wellness program for employees, which was made possible by a grant from Victoria Hospital Foundation. Thanks to the grant, the Social and Wellness Committee at ACCESS Fort Garry is able to organize a range of activities for the staff that promote physical and mental well-being, fitness, and stress reduction. The activities include things like healthy snack days, outdoor yoga sessions, bowling parties, and staff barbecues.  

Robert McLennan, a Team Manager at ACCESS Fort Garry and a member of their Social and Wellness Committee said, “It gives staff something to look forward to, I have gotten feedback that said it’s just about feeling appreciated. It’s knowing that the managers here value them and appreciate them, that we understand what they’re going through and what everyone has had to go through the past few years. I think they appreciate that there is some effort being made to try to brighten their day.”



At Victoria Hospital Foundation we understand how important it is, as McLennan said, for staff to feel valued. Supporting our healthcare workers' resilience and mental health has always been and will continue to be one of our top priorities. If we are able to help brighten their day, even just a little bit, we are one step closer to achieving our vision for the community.

The ACCESS Fort Garry centre offers a full range of community health services, with approximately 500 employees working on-site. With such a large number of employees, the wellness activities allow for new connections to be made between staff. It gets them to engage with people that they might normally not, have a laugh, and enjoy each other’s company.

Since the implementation of the staff wellness initiative last year, there have been significant improvements in workplace morale and notable increases in staff engagement. Staff are able to build relationships that will help them better assist patients and clients, for example, if a patient needs to be referred to a different department. There has also been a reduction in employee absenteeism. As a result, all these factors contribute to an improved experience for the members of our community who benefit from ACCESS Fort Garry’s services.

Tanis Miller, another member of the Social and Wellness Committee said, “Patient care has improved because the staff are happier. They look forward to coming to work if they know there is a wellness event or staff appreciation, and when staff are happy to come into work it reflects onto client and patient care.”

For patients, staff wellness may directly define their experience. If a nurse smiles because of feeling fulfilled or relaxed, it could lift the mood of their patients- better quality patient care is a proven outcome of successful employee wellness programs. And to ensure the wellness initiative is effective the committee is continually asking for feedback from staff. Miller said, “We ask a lot for feedback. We’ve done surveys that have a comment and suggestion box too, which we’ve implemented recently- how it’s going, what they would like to see, what they would like to continue to see, those kinds of things.”



At Victoria Hospital Foundation, we are proud to invest in staff health and wellness. This grant makes it possible for us to appreciate and acknowledge all the dedication, commitment, and hard work of the ACCESS Fort Garry staff. And McLennan wanted to make sure the hard work of Natalie Imbrogno, the Community Director for Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, did not go unnoticed, saying “A really big tip of the cap has to go to Natalie. This whole committee and the starting of it came from her. She did a lot of the heavy lifting, and it was her idea to reach out to Victoria Hospital Foundation to apply for funding. Natalie is our Community Area Director here and she’s been a major part of getting this going and seeing it through to where it is now. We need to acknowledge that.”

The future of this initiative will be guided by ACCESS Fort Garry staff, but the possibilities are endless as Victoria Hospital Foundation has recently renewed our support of this committee for the coming year. And we have no doubt that it will continue to contribute to healthier futures for all members of our community.

Victoria Hospital Foundation is proud to invest in staff wellness at Victoria Hospital as well, with activities and snacks regularly available at the hospital to show our appreciation for our healthcare workers.