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Gingerbread house competition in Richmond brings connection and cheer
Vancouver Coastal Health’s Richmond teams are currently hosting a gingerbread house competition featuring 22 entries created by staff and medical staff from acute and community sites.
“The holidays can be a difficult time of year for some folks,” said Augusta Babs-Ishola, Director, Strategy Deployment and Clinical Optimization at Richmond Hospital. “The gingerbread house competition aims to bring connection and cheer to staff and medical staff, as well as to patients and visitors.”
This friendly competition, which began on December 2, has generated conversation and a joyful atmosphere. The organizing team empties a very full ballot box every night!
“Our team wanted to bring in traditional holiday elements for our gingerbread house, so it evoked nostalgia for patients and visitors,” said Chelsea Holob, Patient Care Coordinator - Acute Medicine/Surgery/Telemetry at Richmond Hospital. “We worked on our entry during breaks, and it was a great outlet for creativity and problem solving. It also generated lots of conversation and connection, as other teams would stop by and ask us about our work.”
This positive experience was shared across the Richmond Community of Care.
“We found that it was really good for team building, regardless of the competition. This activity brought us together for something fun and rewarding,” said Maria Monachini, Administrative Cordinator at the Richmond Community Health Access Centre. “Although it was four of us who built the gingerbread house, we had a lot of support from our wider team. We look forward to having more of these sorts of team building activities.”
This light-hearted, seasonal initiative is a part of the Richmond’s Employee Wellness Program, which launched this past fall and is funded by the Richmond Hospital Foundation and donor community. The program is focused on supporting recruitment and retention by enhancing the workplace environment through wellness innovation. It also aligns with Vancouver Coastal Health’s vision of supporting healthy lives in healthy communities.
The gingerbread houses are on display in the main lobby of the Richmond Hospital. Staff, medical staff, patients and visitors are invited to cast their vote before the competition closes on December 31. The winner will be announced on January 6.