Foundation donors are supporting the compassionate care St. B nurses deliver each and every day. To date, $116,357 has been granted towards initiatives that celebrate and recognize the incredible nursing staff at St. Boniface Hospital.
Shari Barker is so much more than a nurse. She’s a guardian of hearts.
As a Registered Nurse in cardiology and a Heart Transplant Coordinator, she’s an expert in her field and a lifelong learner. Barker is known for being a highly skilled, tireless advocate for her patients. Alan Scramstad, a heart transplant recipient and President of the Manitoba transplant group Heart Links, has known her for nearly 15 years. “She’s such a hard worker, so devoted to her patients; she will advocate tirelessly for the people she cares for,” he said.
Dr. Michael Helewa, a retired physician and fellow member of Heart Links, echoed Scramstad’s praise of Barker. He recounted a story where she went to a patient’s home in the middle of the night to attend to a ventricular assist device, a machine that keeps the heart functioning until a transplant becomes available, which suddenly started relentlessly beeping.
“That’s just who she is. She’s often goes beyond the call of duty,” said Helewa. “She focuses her skills and care on the individual and on the immediate family. She becomes like family to her patients.”
Barker is known as an incredibly warm liaison between patients, their families, and physicians. She takes their anxieties, fears, and preferences into account while connecting them with care providers whenever possible. Transplant care requires a community. With that in mind, she gets to know the patient’s family and friends in different ways, like learning their children’s names. Her energy, efforts, and dedication inspire hope and healing every day.
As Scramstad put it, “Getting a transplant isn’t the end of your life. For so many of us, it’s a new beginning.”
With an unwavering commitment to care, Barker not only ensures the best possible experience for patients and fosters connections that extend far beyond a hospital stay. Rather, they stick for life.
“I love helping our patients along the way and strive to make sure their transplant journey is as easy as possible when I can,” said Barker. “I see firsthand the benefits of contributions from the many generous donors to the Cardiac Sciences program. These gifts change lives.”