Sudbury Regional Hospital (HRSRH) and the Holiday Inn Hotel - formerly the Howard Johnson - continued a unique partnership throughout the holiday season by offering patients? families free lodging when travelling to Sudbury to visit a loved one.
?The holidays are a time to celebrate and we?re excited to have the opportunity to partner with the hospital to help bring patients and their families together,? said Holiday Inn's groups co-ordinator, Shirley Cardinal.
?The holidays can be a difficult time of year if geographical or financial barriers get in the way of visiting a loved one,? added Cardinal. ?Working with the hospital on this initiative provides us with the opportunity to eliminate some of these barriers to allow hospital patients to celebrate the season with their family.?
Since December 2003, the Holiday Inn in Sudbury has provided more than 100 free rooms to families visiting a loved one at the hospital. Each year, from Dec. 23 to 29, the hospital works closely with the Holiday Inn to help bring families closer together during the holidays, while ensuring patient confidentiality remains paramount.
Sean Barrette, media relations officer with HRSRH, said that in order to keep people from taking advantage of the service, it wasn't announced publicly during the holiday season.
Instead, the hospital identified families that needed a hotel room, he said.
