Chinese help hospital reach new heights

Members of the Chinese community embarked on an adventure of a lifetime with a local hospital group to help raise funds for a new operating room.

Sophia Sun, CEO of Phoenix Financial, who joined Markham Stouffville Hospital's (MSH) fundraising campaign Trek Everest recently, said it was a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience.

For 15 days from April 22 to May 6, Sun and 24 other MSH physicians, clinicians and hospital supporters embarked on an expedition from Kathmandu, Nepal, 154 kilometers through the Himalayas to Base Camp Mount Everest.

The adventure celebrates the 65th anniversary of Sir Edmund Hilary's ascent to the top and his son, Peter, accompanied the expedition.

"This trip was the most challenging thing I have ever done," said Sun. "Even though I was prepared, I would not have been able to do it without my teammates on the trek." Sun also serves as president of the Canada China Investment Association.

The team had only nine months to prepare for the challenge. They exercised a number of days each week, learned breathing techniques and geared up with all the necessary tools for the journey, all to ensure they could handle the tough terrain and varying conditions on the rooftop of the world.

"Our expedition is no doubt one of the hardest, most humbling and most rewarding commitments each of us has ever done," says Brad Morris, board chair of the MSH Foundation. "Not only were there physical demands on our own fitness levels, but the physiology and unknowns of one's body and ability to adapt to altitude and changing conditions were challenges too."

The entire team relied heavily on one another, which brought everyone together to persevere.

While there, medical professionals in the expedition volunteered at a local hospital that was recently devastated by a severe earthquake.

"I went to Everest thinking I would see the world in a whole new way, but I came home with a simple but powerful lesson: teamwork and community can make anything possible," Sun added.

The group was also accompanied by Andrew Lock, an Australian who has climbed all 14 of earth's 8,000-metre-plus peaks.

"We're very proud to serve the Canadian diversity community. The Asian community, the Chinese community are very important part we work with," said Suzette Strong, CEO of the MSH Foundation.

"We are here to serve the Chinese community, we need them to participate in our fundraising efforts, and they have been doing it in a wonderful way. We also hope we can get other communities on board and just keep growing to meet the needs of hospital fundraising," Strong said.

The team has raised nearly 80 percent of its $750,000 goal. Funds raised through the Trek will outfit a much-needed Operating Room (OR) at MSH. To meet increasing volumes, the hospital needs a new OR designed for the specialized needs of fluoroscopy — or real-time x-ray video — an essential tool used in many types of procedures such as kidney stone removal and other surgical procedures.