Jamie Hart

Turning lemons into lemonade is something Jamie Hart knows well. At the age of 32, Jamie’s life was turned upside down when doctors discovered a tumor and diagnosed him with brain cancer. After receiving life-saving surgery and months of radiation, Jamie was in need of rehabilitation and community and that’s where Providence Care became such an important part of his life.

“I had to do a lot of physio because I couldn’t walk after my surgery, and I did a lot of speech therapy. The other patients were incredible, and the staff was beyond amazing. Being a part of the Experience Partner Program is my chance to give back and let me rely on my experience as a patient.”

Jamie spent six weeks at the end of 2016 at the former St. Mary’s on the Lake Hospital for his rehabilitation after trying to go back to work and not being physically or mentally able.

“After my surgery I was isolated, my driver’s license was stripped, and I was stuck at home. Going to St. Mary’s on the Lake gave me a social circle and a community as well as the emotional and physical support I needed. Talking to the staff, the other patients, the doctors, they were willing to talk to me as a human being and not as a patient which was 100% helpful to my recovery.”

Jamie is one of the original members of the Providence Care Experience Partner Program joining when it first launched in 2019. Jamie acts as the patient voice on the Quality Committee of the Board of Directors and helped design patient rooms at Providence Transitional Care Centre (PTCC) before it opened.

“It gives me purpose to give back. I want to help others the same way I was helped. I wouldn’t be here without Providence Care’s rehabilitation and the staff that work there.”

Jamie is a life-long resident of Kingston, a father of two and has been married for 13 years. Jamie loves tattoo art and lets his daughters choose every tattoo on his right arm. Some of the designs include butterflies, fairies, flowers, even a pineapple.