Founded in 1956, Hemophilia Ontario is the Ontario Chapter of the Canadian Hemophilia Society, a volunteer driven provincially incorporated organization and one of the 21 charities supported by Federated Health Charities.
What are the Vision, Mission and Values of the Organization?
Vision
A world free from the pain and suffering of inherited bleeding disorders.
Mission
To strive to improve the health and quality of life for all people with inherited bleeding disorders, and to find a cure.
Values
The current organizational identity and experience is based in the loss suffered by the hemophilia community for:
- those with inherited bleeding disorders and
- other who were infected with HIV and/or Hepatitis C and their families, friends and communities; through blood or blood products they depended on for lifesaving treatment and therapy over the past two decades.
With this principle at the centre, Hemophilia Ontario is guided by the following values: inclusivity, connectedness, advocacy, excellence, integrity, respect and collaboration.
What is Hemophilia?
Hemophilia is a bleeding disorder that affects approximately 1 in 10,000 people. People with hemophilia do not have enough clotting factor VIII or IX in their blood. As a result, they can bleed for longer than normal. Carriers of hemophilia can also experience similar bleeding patterns and require treatment.
Landon’s Story: The Importance of Camps
My name is Landon Bullock; I am 12 and have severe Hemophilia B. I started attending Wanakita camp when I was 7 years old. Before attending camp, I felt like I was the only one with hemophilia, as I did not have others close to me. While at camp I was able to do things I would never have been able to where I live due to having hemophilia nurses there as support. I had the chance to make friends with other kids that have hemophilia. Making these new friends at camp, I no longer felt like I was the only one fighting this battle.
My first year at camp, I had a councillor named Luke who was also a hemophiliac. Before I attended Camp Wanakita I hated needles and was scared of having infusions; with the help of the nurses and Luke as motivation, I came home knowing how to mix my own factor and helping hold the needle with a nurse or my mom for infusion. By the time, I went back next summer I was hitting my own veins at home.
When I returned to camp, I was excited to see my camp friends again and show the nurses my progress. I would go with my friends to the Bayer Den, even when I didn’t need my needle, to support and encourage my friends to do their infusions.
This camp has given me a place to feel normal, have friends with the same battle, and learn new activities and survival skills. If I never had the opportunity to attend this camp, I think I would have struggled with my infusions and continued to feel isolated.
Thank you for providing support so kids like me can attend camp. Camp programs are Hemophilia Ontario’s largest program of the year and are 2/3rds of their program expense budget. To support kids like Landon, please donate to Hemophilia Ontario through the Federated Health Charities’ campaign, April 1 to June 28, 2024.
