After the death last fall of his immunosuppressed daughter, Louis Sansfaçon created a pin to put on the mask to raise awareness of the importance of keeping one’s distance, especially when a person with an immune deficiency is present.
The Immunoclip, a red “I”, is a cleanable and reusable plastic pin that is worn on the side of the mask.
Its creator, Louis Sansfaçon, hopes to be able to protect the most vulnerable people by identifying their health condition. “A person meets someone who wears the “I” on his mask, he must respect the distance. We must remember that distancing is an important tool to fight viruses”.
For him, it is a question of making the population aware of the presence of medically vulnerable people, particularly in the context of a pandemic. It is therefore a way to distinguish people at risk.
“It says to the other, pay attention to me, because the other, it can be you sometimes”, he explained.
He also mentioned that people at risk “don’t have to be embarrassed to wear the symbol. It is not wrong. It’s a medical situation, and you tell others that if you love me, you care about me, even if you don’t know me. I recognize that you are a person who is fragile.
In honor of his daughter
This initiative came to him with the help of his daughter, Émilie. While she was fighting cancer, being herself immunosuppressed, a virus finally made her lose her fight.
Louis Sansfaçon therefore does not want to bear the title of founder, but rather be the one who carries the torch, in memory of his daughter.
“Émilie, that’s what she said to me: Dad, people have to know that I’m more fragile. Unfortunately, her situation meant that she did not win, but that is why in her memory, I tell myself that the number of people we are going to have helped cannot be named, ”a- he pointed out.
From more humane rooms to palliative care
The funds raised by this symbol, with the support of the CHU de Québec Foundation, could make it possible to build what he calls “Émilie’s rooms”, facilities to offer a better quality of end-of-life.
Although this construction is not yet official, the president and CEO of the foundation, Marie-Claude Paré, hopes to be able to move forward.
“In the humanization of care, there are rooms that are a little more suitable. It could be rooms with a bigger, more comfortable bed. Maybe a bedroom with a couch where the family could sleep. These are things that we could possibly add. A truly more human room for more difficult times for families,” she said.
Émilie’s father hopes to be able to expand the distribution of this symbol to the entire province, but also internationally, since he mentions that “immunosuppressed people, there are not just in Quebec”.
For more information, or to obtain a pin, it is possible to do so on the CHU de Québec Foundation website or to contact [email protected].