Stephanie MacKenzie is the co-chair of the 2025 Queens General Hospital Hustle. (Rick Conrad)

A popular fundraiser for Queens General Hospital in Liverpool is back and organizers hope it will be bigger than ever.

People will be able to go to the hospital hustle in person for the first time since before the pandemic.

Stephanie MacKenzie, the co-chair of the 2025 Queens General Hospital Hustle, says the last time the fundraiser was held was an online version in 2021.

“The hospital hustle is just the community getting together to raise funds for extra equipment at our hospital. It was an annual event for 40 years until 2019,” MacKenzie explains.

“This is really important. It’s been a labour of love for us to try to bring it back and we want to make sure everybody knows it’s back, because it’s something that people really look forward to.”

The hustle this year will be held at the Liverpool Curling Club on Sept. 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. It’s organized by the Queens General Hospital Auxiliary, which also runs the hospital’s gift shop.

MacKenzie says the popular yard sale-style setup will return, along with food served by local Kiwanis Club members and doctors from the hospital. And nurses will be on hand to perform checkups on the little ones’ dolls or teddy bears.

“And we’ll have baked goods for people to buy and take home as well, and preserves, all the normal tables we have with jewelry, books, the big white elephant table, tools and we’re having a craft table as well.

“It’s hoped to be a family event and a lot of fun for the communtiy but an important fundraising event for the hospital. It’s important to show support for our hospital because it’s so very important to our community.”

Organizers are also planning a silent and live auction on the day of the hustle at the curling club. And for the first time, there will be an online Facebook auction, which will begin on Sept. 2, with items donated by local businesses.

All money raised this year will go toward buying a special cardiac monitor and a linear probe for the hospital’s new echocardiogram machine.

“This is an additional probe that will allow it to do more things. So people won’t have to go to Bridgewater to get these more specialized tests.”

MacKenzie says they hope to raise at least $20,000.

“But we think that we can raise more. In most of the recent years, we’ve raised $20,000 or more.”

They have about 30 volunteers helping out this year. But MacKenzie says they could always use more. 

“Where we really need volunteers is on Sept. 7, we are moving all of the treasures that have been donated and stored at Milton Hall to the curling club. We have rented a moving truck to do that and we’re hoping to have enough people that we can stand there and pass the boxes along and just make it happen fairly quickly.”

Anyone who wants to volunteer at this year’s hospital hustle or donate any auction or sale items can email organizers at queenshospitalhustle@gmail.com.

You’ll also be able to buy raffle tickets to help. Volunteers will be selling them on Saturday at the Sobeys in Liverpool from 10 to 4.

And if you want to participate in the online auction beginning Tuesday, search for the Facebook group at 2025 Queens County Hospital Hustle Online Auction.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Lauren Murphy is the director of recruitment and volunteer services with Nova Scotia Health. (Nova Scotia Health photo)

Nova Scotia Health is looking for more Nova Scotians to fill hundreds of jobs around the province.

The department is holding its second annual provincial career fair on Thursday (March 27) from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 11 locations around Nova Scotia.

The closest one for Queens County residents will be in Bridgewater at the Michelin Social Club, 221 Logan Rd.

Lauren Murphy, the director of recruitment and volunteer services with Nova Scotia Health, says last year’s event attracted about 3,000 people and led to more than 220 people being hired.

“It’s really an opportunity to showcase our roles and jobs and talk to Nova Scotians about our opportunities we have at Nova Scotia Health,” she says.

“Because we’re hosting it from coast to coast in the province it’s also an opportunity for people in their own communities to find a job there so they don’t have to leave.”

Murphy says job seekers will be able to speak to hiring managers from all parts of Nova Scotia Health. 

“That’s also the beauty of showcasing the amount of positions that we have. We had admin staff hired … but we also had diagnostic imaging technologists, we had folks who are going to be supporting our pharmacies, we had (emergency) nurses and specialty nurses. It really was amazing to see the amount of people who showed up and were able to connect with a hiring manager and find a job.

“If you think about what it takes to run a hospital, obviously doctors are critical but there are so many more moving parts and pieces to it. We’re a 30,000-people employer. We’re Atlantic Canada’s largest and we really do cover everything you can think of.”

Murphy says being able to talk to somebody in person can help demystify the application process.

“Walking in there and being able to talk to people about such a wide variety is so much different than scrolling online and trying to doing your own research. … To be able to talk to someone who is living and breathing that job day in and day out … I really think that’s what bridges that gap between virtual and in-person.”

Job applicants will also be able to upload their resume using a QR code at the job fair. Murphy said Nova Scotia Health officials will follow up with applicants the week after the event who applied using the QR code to give them an update on their application.

She said she hopes to beat last year’s numbers, both for turnout and for hires. 

“Any person that we can hire is a win. There are such amazing opportunites for internal advancement. So even if you take one job tomorrow, there’s a million different pathways you can take so you can have a fulsome career at Nova Scotia Health, which I think in a lot of companies these days, that’s pretty rare.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Nova Scotia Health is holding a drop-in clinic in Caledonia on March 20. (Province of Nova Scotia)

Nova Scotia Health is holding a mobile primary care clinic in Caledonia next Thursday (March 20) from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

The drop-in clinic will be held at the North Queens Community Health Centre. 

Only certain health issues can be seen at the drop-in clinic. Nova Scotia Health says it can address only non-urgent conditions such as prescription refills or renewals, minor respiratory or gastrointestinal problems, muscle pain, rashes or urinary tract infections.

People are being asked to have their health cards and a list of their medications with them. 

Medical staff will screen patients to make sure they can treat the concern at the clinic.

The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool is also now open 24 hours a day from Mondays at 8 a.m. to Fridays at 1:30 p.m.

Nova Scotia Health is also organizing drop-in clinics in Bridgewater at the Medical Arts Building on Glen Allen Drive. Those are set for Sun., March 16 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wed., March 26 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. and Sun., March 30 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Queens General Hospital. Photo Ed Halverson

The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be closed on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. and reopen Thursday at 8 a.m.

Nova Scotia Health advises people experiencing a medical emergency to call 911.

Patients of Queens Family Health can access the same-day clinic, depending on provider availability, by calling 902-354-3322.

The emergency department at South Shore Regional Hospital in Bridgewater is open.

The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool. (Rick Conrad photo)

By Rick Conrad