The Ronald McDonald House in Medicine Hat has been welcoming families since Aug. 4. (Photo Courtesy of Ross Lavigne)

By Chris Brown

A calm, home environment

Medicine Hat’s Ronald McDonald House is welcoming families

Aug 19, 2020 | 5:22 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – It didn’t happen with the fanfare they would have liked, but Medicine Hat’s Ronald McDonald House began accepting families on Aug. 4

Cassi Hider, general manager of the Medicine Hat house, says the effect it will have on Medicine Hat and the surrounding area is unbelievable.

“People really don’t realize there’s a lot of people from our surrounding area that utilize Medicine Hat Regional Hospital, that have children that they might need a place to lay their head for a couple of nights,” says Hider. “We are developing a really good positive relationship with the staff and managers at the facility so that we can work together closely and help families within in and around our community in a stressful time.”

Currently, there is one mother at the house, located on Fourth Street SW, just steps from the hospital’s main entrance. Hider says she has a newborn in the NICU and tells Hider she loves the house.

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“There’s a calmness within our home that we’ve tried to create, a calmness, a home environment, a place for them to maybe exhale and not concern themselves with the stress they already have in their life,” she said. “There’s food that we’ve been working on as staff that we have created and frozen for them. So they love that home feeling, they can come, they can heat up some food they can read a book make some tea, have a quiet time before they go back to deal with their life.”

Hider adds the house serves families spending time in the NICU, adolescent mental health and labouring mothers among other health-related concerns.

The kindness and generosity of people in Medicine Hat and the region have stood out to Hider.

“We are so fortunate during this pandemic to still have people come and want to monetarily donate or quilts that they want to make and give. It blows my mind that this is happening right now,” she said.

A space behind the house will be known as the Danny and Cindy Meier Outdoor Retreat in honour of a couple that donated $250,000 to the house.

Hider also praised the local Save-On Foods store and staff for their generosity toward the house.

More chances for members to support Ronald McDonald House will be available once it is fully operational. Volunteering to cook or bake for families staying at the house or general help in the office are two possibilities Hider mentions, adding they’re also always accepting donations.

There will be some sort of grand opening in the future, says Hider, but there’s no date set.

“When that happens we’d love to show everyone inside the house so people have an understanding of what it looks like and what it feels like.”

Opening phases

“While the Medicine Hat House is officially open to families, we are not able to be at full capacity just yet,” RMHC – Alberta marketing and communications manager Julie List explains in an email to CHAT News.

The house is bound by a four-phase intake process that has been carefully vetted by both Alberta Health Services and parent organization, RMHC Global.

This four-phase process applies to all the Ronald McDonald Houses in the province, including Medicine Hat. Each phase of the intake process allows us to essentially increase occupancy gradually and safely. Medicine Hat is now close to the completion of Phase 1.

“Each phase lasts approximately 2-3 weeks and allows not only for the house to ramp up to full occupancy, but also allows for “normal” resumption of operations as well. These phases don’t just affect family intake, but everything from operations to programming to health and safety protocols,” List writes.