Updates / Mileage
Unit Tour May 8
The Swim for Kids event is a fund raiser for the Hospital for Sick Children and specifically, their Burn Unit. To give my team a good feel for what they were raising funds for, a tour was set up of the Sick Kids Burn unit.
During the tour we met Dr Chris Forrest, who is one of the medical directors that help run the Burn Unit. Dr Forrest explained that the Burn Unit at Sick Kids takes care of about 150 to 200 kids a year. Most of these suffer from scalds but they also see 5-10 kids suffering from major burns. The nurses and doctors in this unit work very closely together and consider themselves a strong team. Dr. Forrest reiterated how much they depend on the specially trained nurses and therapists in the unit. They all feel there is something very innocent about a young child suffering in pain from a burn.
Burns to children often change their lives forever and the team working in this unit know the young patients need long term support. Often the children are visited by nurses or Child life Specialists in the unit for up to 4 years after they are discharged. Often therapy is needed for the parents as well as the children. Obviously this take a huge commitment on behalf of the team and is often when charitable donations have the biggest impact.
One recent fire victim was a 3 year old who suffered from flame burns on 65% of his body. Evidently he turned on the burners of their gas stove and then stood on top of the burners. When his mother heard the fire alarm she discovered him in the kitchen totally on fire. During his stay in the Burn unit he had to be resuscitated over 25 times. The majority of the burns are scalds – usually in the kitchen when a child pulls a hot kettle or pot off the stove.
The Burn unit has been very progressive in dealing with one of the most painful events in burn treatment, the changing of dressings. Often the children have to be sedated as the dressings are changed and this involves very expensive equipment. One of the areas the hospital has experimented with is virtual reality to help distract the kids during this painful event.
The Burn Unit also contains a plastic surgery section that often does painful skin grafts. Patients come from all over Ontario to Sick Kids for treatment. The Burn Unit is a popular charity for firefighters who often see the victims. One of the firefighters on our team helping me swim across the lake was at a fire recently where 2 kids died.
The unit is also very proactive in prevention and research and many of the donations that come from events like swim for kids, are wisely spent in these areas.
Mileage:
January Base Swim - 5 hrs / 17km
February Base Swim - 6 hrs / 19km
March Base Swim - 6 1/2 hrs / 20km
April Base Swim - 7 1/2 hrs / 23km
May 15 - Cold water acclimatization swim in Lake Wilcox 5km in 58F
May 29 - Last indoor base swim! 7+ hours
June Base Swims – Early open water
June 5 - 8km in 61F - my kayaker didn't want to stand in the water (neither did I)
June 11
I found myself up in Orr lake for most of the day. Long time friends Dave and Louise hosted several swimmers up at the lake to train with me. Spoiled by the water temperature this time of year the lake was already 72F. A strengthening west wind gave me some good chop to work through slowing me down a little. Many thanks to Dave, Louise and several of the Kempenfelt Triathlon Club - Shawn, Ted, Joe, Leslie and Mischele for the company in the water.
