Saskatoon doctor teams up with church to create prayer line for front-line workers

There’s a local effort in Saskatoon offering spiritual support to front-line health-care workers who need it during the COVID-19 pandemic.

It all began with a conversation between Dr. Gene Marcoux, a clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Saskatchewan, and a young health-care worker who feared he would contract the disease and bring it home with him.

“We talked about his personal sort of strength issues. And, just that the whole issue of being able to manage… just the fear of the team,” Marcoux said.

The conversation prompted Marcoux to take action and following another conversation, this time with his pastor at Elim Church, the “Healthcare Heroes Prayerline” was born, allowing medical professionals to reach out to local pastors.

1:42 Coronavirus: Safety and financial concerns factors for postponed summer festivals

• Coronavirus: Safety and financial concerns factors for postponed summer festivals
• Behind the scenes at Global Saskatoon during the coronavirus pandemic
• Where to find help during the COVID-19 pandemic
• Kinsmen raising money for charities effected by the COVID-19 pandemic
• Fire chief Morgan Hackl on senior safety during the COVID-19 pandemic

Previous Video

Next Video

“A health-care worker would call that number. It would go to one of our on-call people. We have people on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, where you can call in and basically we’ll just pray for you,” Elim Church associate pastor Luke Gordon said.

Gordon said the creation of the prayer line simply adds another layer of support for health-care workers.

“I want to emphasize it’s not a counselling line. It’s not us trying to fix your problems. We don’t know what our health-care workers are going through, you know, but we just want to be here for them,” Gordon said.

The service is available to anyone in the industry.

“I think it’s very important not just to limit this to two physicians and nurses, the staff that run the food services, the cleaners is essential central part of the team. And so this is for anybody who works in the system,” Marcoux said.

For Gordon, setting up the prayer line felt like the perfect way to give back to those fighting on the front line against the virus.

“It’s that call to be selfless. It’s that call to love and to care for people and to not to think of ourselves less, but to think less often of ourselves and to put other people before us,” Gordon said.

Volunteers handling the phone lines can be reached at 1-866-306-HERO or online.

Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Health officials caution against all international travel. Returning travellers are legally obligated to self-isolate for 14 days, beginning March 26, in case they develop symptoms and to prevent spreading the virus to others. Some provinces and territories have also implemented additional recommendations or enforcement measures to ensure those returning to the area self-isolate.

Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.

To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out.

For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.