One accident. One devastating injury.
A life changed in minutes.
It can happen on a quiet drive to work. Or on a rural road, far from help. It can happen to anyone — including you.
Before I go any further, I want to thank you. As someone who has answered the call to support patient care at Royal University Hospital before, you have already made a difference for people facing some of the most difficult moments of their lives. Your generosity has helped ensure that when trauma strikes, our teams are here. Ready to act, ready to care.
Today, I’m writing because that need continues.
My name is Dr. Elliott Pally, and I’m an orthopedic trauma surgeon at Royal University Hospital (RUH). I care for patients with severe bone and limb injuries caused by sudden accidents.
RUH serves as the trauma centre for Central and Northern Saskatchewan, making orthopedic trauma one of the busiest services in the hospital.
In trauma care, teamwork is everything. Outcomes are shaped through the collaboration of dozens of experienced professionals.
Teamwork saved Darryl Gurbach’s life.
Darryl was severely injured in a workplace accident on a grid road near Tisdale, Saskatchewan. Trapped for hours in freezing temperatures, his legs were crushed by a heavy metal gate inside a gravel truck trailer. By the time he was found and transported — first to Tisdale Hospital, then airlifted to RUH — his life was hanging in the balance.
As my colleagues and I worked to save him, Darryl held onto one thing: the thought of his wife and family.
At RUH, he endured many surgeries and spent more than a month in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). His survival, and his recovery, are a testament to what skilled, dedicated trauma teams can accomplish.
Today, Darryl can walk. He can drive truck again. Most importantly, he can play with his grandchildren.
This is what trauma care is really about.
It’s people. It’s expertise. It’s readiness at any hour, on any day.
But even the most skilled teams need environments that support the intensity, speed and complexity of modern trauma care. To continue delivering world-class outcomes — and to recruit and retain the highly trained specialists Saskatchewan depends on — we must invest in updating our trauma orthopedic toolkit so our teams can work together effectively.
By donating today, you can help ensure we’re ready. Not someday, but now.
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Ready for the next call. Ready for the next patient. Ready when life changes in an instant.
Thank you for standing with our RUH trauma team and for investing in care that saves lives when there is no time to wait.
Sincerely,
Dr. Elliott Pally, MD, FRCSC
Assistant Professor, Orthopedic Surgery
Division of Orthopedic Surgery, University of Saskatchewan, Royal University Hospital
P.S. You have helped RUH patients before. I hope you will stand with us again by making a gift today to strengthen trauma care in Saskatchewan. To discuss the many ways that you can support this work — including monthly giving, gifts of shares, or a gift in your Will — please contact Candace Boersma at 306.655.6501 or candace.boersma@ruhf.org. Your partnership helps ensure we are ready when lives depend on it.
