Representing Those Who have had to Travel for Cardiac Care

Published Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Representing Those Who have had to Travel for Cardiac Care

Eva Jones, Cabinet Member, Our Hearts At Home Cardiovascular Campaign


Meet Eva Jones, Cabinet Member, Our Hearts At Home Cardiovascular Campaign

Eva Jones will be quick to tell you she doesn’t have much to say about herself, but she has lots to say if the topic is having to travel out of town for health care. She knows how difficult this is because she lived it.

Her husband John had a heart attack in 2006, and he was sent to Hamilton for angioplasty. “To think, we now have a Cath Lab and do the procedure right here. That’s amazing,” says Eva. “But wouldn’t it be even better if we could have all heart surgeries done at home?”

There wouldn’t be worries about booking flights; who is going to travel with you; can you afford to have someone go with you; where is your companion going to stay; are you going to fly home when you are released from the hospital or will you be more comfortable staying for a few days to make sure you are ok? These all need to be considered when you have to travel for health care.

This experience is at the heart of why she joined the Our Hearts At Home Cardiovascular Campaign Cabinet. She and the rest of the Cabinet members have been hard at work for the past few years raising money for the $14-million campaign.

“When I met with potential donors, many of them assumed the government funds the equipment for the project,” says Eva. “It doesn’t. Donors from the community and region need to cover this cost, 100% of the equipment and 10% of the cost of the build. It’s important that people know this.”

Eva is proud to be part of the campaign Cabinet, which she says is a hard working group with a nice mix of expertise. Some members have worked on other Health Sciences Foundation campaigns which allows her to lean on them and draw from their previous experience.

Meeting the people who had the financial and emotional strain of having to leave town for cardiovascular surgery makes her push a little harder. “People who have had cardiac issues – they get it. They’re the ones who really understand the need to have these services here. We need to get the whole community and region behind this project. Let’s try to lessen the stress for cardiac patients and keep Our Hearts at Home.”

 

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