This year, Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean is receiving more than $113,000 to improve the care journey and overall health of children in the region.
Enfant Soleil helps more than 100 healthcare facilities across the province and provides invaluable support to the four major pediatric centres, which give specialized and sub-specialized care to any child who needs it.
Spotlight on a project promising beautiful things on the horizon
Hôpital de Chicoutimi
A calming sensory room for child psychiatry inpatients will soon be set up at Hôpital de Chicoutimi, thanks to a $15,000 grant from Enfant Soleil. Each year, the unit sees 150 to 200 children and adolescents between the ages of 4 and 17. This new environment will foster calmness, reduce the intensity of crisis episodes and improve the therapeutic atmosphere.
The space will be designed specifically to help young patients regulate their emotions through sensory and therapeutic tools, used by the unit’s personnel. Features will include:
- Comfortable cushions and armchairs that help relax and regain a sense of calm;
- Various sensory elements (textures, manipulable objects, practical tools for managing emotions);
- Adjustable, soft lighting;
- Soothing images and relaxing music media;
- Exercise equipment to help manage impulsiveness and emotions.
This room will provide a safe and caring environment, helping young people develop self-regulation and self-calming strategies.
Helping grown-ups improve young lives
Essential support for the entire pediatric ecosystem
Discover other projects funded in the region
2 pulse oximeters
- This versatile tool is used to measure the oxygen given to a child according to their needs, as well as their heart rate and rate of respiration. It facilitates comprehensive and customizable monitoring through configurable alarms, which can quickly alert parents and healthcare professionals if the child’s condition deteriorates, allowing quick action to be taken. Pulse oximeters can also be used to monitor children at home, making life easier for families, while also allowing the teams to intervene in more remote areas, such as La Baie.
1 electroacoustic analyzer
- Designed o maximize interventions for children ages 0 to 5, this device checks the adjustment of hearing aids to give young children the best conditions for optimal perception of speech and sound signals. These conditions will support language development and facilitate their learning.
1 tonometer
- A tonometer is an instrument that gently and safely measures pressure in the eyes, even in children under the age of two.
1 ceiling track lift
- Helping smoothly move patients in a way that is safe for both the staff and the patient, this ceiling lift will facilitate transfers and increase the availability of pediatric care and services. It will also stimulate the children’s motor skills by helping them stand upright and balanced and take a few assisted steps.
1 dynamometer
- Used on children diagnosed with a neuromuscular disease, this device helps monitor changes in muscle strength and quickly note any regression due to a degenerative disease.
Sensory stimulation equipment
- •Young people who visit the centre will benefit from the addition of several pieces of sensory stimulation equipment that will help them refocus through play while also fostering concentration and emotional regulation.
Setup of a family intervention room
- The setup of a new family intervention room will give young people access to a welcoming, inclusive therapeutic environment adapted to the families’ different needs. Each year, more than 500 children ages six to 17 will be able to benefit from social work services and nearly 200 children will be able to receive special education. This project is jointly funded by Enfant Soleil and Santé Québec*.
*2025–2026 funding made possible through an agreement initiated with the ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux.
1 physiology monitor
- This equipment, jointly funded by Enfant Soleil and Santé Québec*, lets healthcare personnel quickly, continuously and accurately monitor a child’s vital signs, such as their heart rate, breathing, oxygen saturation and temperature. With its real-time display and built-in alarms, it ensures more responsive and safe patient management.
*2025–2026 funding made possible through an agreement initiated with the ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux.
1 examination table with scale
- Used for babies from 0 to 18 months, this table is essential for healthcare u to be able to gently, safely and effectively examine and treat small patients.
1 CPR mannequin
- A practical tool for training and crisis simulations, this mannequin is used for teaching purposes. It will help the teams develop the skills and confidence to respond effectively in critical situations when a child needs to be resuscitated.
Motor skill game materials
- These adapted materials will encourage young children in the Atikamekw community to play games that will develop their mobility and motor skills. The new Mamik CPE will offer a welcoming, reassuring, thoughtfully designed living environment while promoting Atikamekw culture and language. These materials will invite the children to move, explore and grow in a stimulating environment, adapted to their needs and rooted in community pride.
- This material is financed by the Sport and Sustainable Health Fund, which aims to promote and support healthy lifestyle habits in children through sports, physical activity and healthy eating while also fostering emotional and mental well-being.
Maeva Thibeault, Enfant Soleil for Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean
Maeva and her family are brilliant ambassadors who courageously share their story and reality.
Maeva’s mom Isabelle was looking forward to a magical first encounter with her daughter, but as soon as she was born, everything changed. Maeva wasn’t breathing. A code pink was triggered, and the little girl was rushed to the Centre mère-enfant Soleil, where she was diagnosed with a severe congenital heart disease called Tetralogy of Fallot.
She underwent her first open-heart operation at just two weeks old, with critical complications. But she held on against all odds and after a three-month hospital stay, was finally able to go home. A second surgery in 2023 went better, and Maeva quickly regained her energy. Between medical check-ups and constant monitoring, the family welcomed a surprise: little sister Sofia. Maeva will have to undergo more surgeries, but her strength and love of life shine through every day. Her parents savour every moment, keenly aware of the fragility and beauty of life.