Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital and Logix Federal Credit Union Partner in Palliative Care Teddy Bear Program

The Palliative Care program at Henry Mayo uses teddy bears to provide comfort to many parents and their children

VALENCIA, CA (July 20, 2021) -- Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital has gratefully announced that Logix Federal Credit Union is continuing to sponsor the hospital’s Foundation Palliative Care Teddy Bear program.

Since 2018, the Palliative Care program at Henry Mayo has used teddy bears to provide comfort to many parents and their children. The bears also bring comfort to the staff involved in difficult cases. When a patient is terminally ill, his or her heartbeat can be recorded by the teddy bear, which is then given to a patient’s family member as a keepsake.

“The response we get from the families that receive a bear has been very positive,” said Balbir Brar, MD, Medical Director of Palliative Care at Henry Mayo. “When a loved one enters the final stages of life, we are able to record the heartbeat of the patient, place the recording in the bear and present the bear as a gift to the child or family member.”

The recordable bears make a profound impact on family members. One such case involved a mother who was non-responsive and on life support. The patient’s son, an only child, was faced with the responsibility of making the health care decisions for his mother.

The son compassionately asked the staff to postpone placing his mother on comfort care until after his upcoming graduation a few days later. Unsure of how the son would respond to receiving a teddy bear, staff provided information on the teddy bear keepsake and asked for permission to prepare one for him.

When the recording of the patient’s heartbeat was finished, the bear was placed in between her arms. When the son returned to his mother’s room, he went straight to the bear, hugged it and cried. The bear provided comfort to the young man during a very difficult time. Knowing they were able to give the young man such a precious gift, the staff was grateful for the opportunity to provide the beautiful keepsake.

“It is a privilege to work with the staff at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital who provide exceptional care to the residents of the Santa Clarita Valley,” Logix President and CEO Ana Fonseca said. “We are pleased to again sponsor the palliative care bears; it’s an opportunity for Logix to provide support in a special way to children and families who are experiencing such great loss.”

While nothing can replace a loved one, the bears help to ease the pain and offer support in the face of tragedy. The Palliative Care team at Henry Mayo is committed to making end-of-life situations as comforting and peaceful as possible for both patients and their families.

“Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital is grateful to Logix Federal Credit Union for continuing to sponsor the Palliative Care Bear program,” said Marlee Lauffer, President of the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Foundation. “We strive to exceed the expectations of those we serve, every day, every time. Support from corporate partners like Logix helps us achieve that goal.”

For more information, please visit henrymayogiving.com.

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ABOUT HENRY MAYO–Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital is a 357-bed not-for-profit acute care hospital serving the Santa Clarita Valley since 1975. The hospital recently opened a new patient tower that includes 90 private patient rooms and a new Center for Women and Newborns, also with all private rooms. Henry Mayo is an Advanced Primary Stroke Center and a STEMI Receiving Center. The hospital features state-of-the-art inpatient facilities, a neonatal intensive care unit, catheterization lab, infusion center, breast center and an outpatient surgery center. Additional services include cardiovascular, trauma, emergency, intensive care, neonatal intensive care, maternity, surgery, nursing, wound care, spine and joint, behavioral health, and acute rehab, as well as cancer, imaging, lab, digestive, respiratory services and physical and occupational therapies. Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital is located at 23845 McBean Parkway, Valencia, CA 91355-2083. For more information, visit henrymayo.com or call 661.200.2000.