Quinte Health’s Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Response Program Receives Funding
Today, Tyler Allsopp, the MPP for Bay of Quinte, visited Belleville General Hospital to announce that Quinte Health will receive an additional $236,000 in base funding. This funding will be used to enhance and expand the critical services of the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Response Program.
Stacey Daub, President and CEO of Quinte Health, shared some words at the event, reflecting on the announcement’s profound meaning:
“This announcement is deeply meaningful to all of us at Quinte Health. Not only because it provides much-needed stability and support to an important service, but because it speaks to something larger—something urgent—and something deeply human. Every day in our hospitals, we see the impact of intimate partner violence and sexual assault. It’s not abstract—it’s personal. It’s urgent. And it’s far too common.
The DVSARP team is on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week—ready to respond across all four of our hospitals in Belleville, Trenton, North Hastings and Picton. These are nurses who bring skill, compassion, and extraordinary strength to the most difficult moments in people’s lives. They don’t just provide medical care—they offer dignity, safety, and hope.
This work is complex. It’s emotionally taxing. And it’s essential. And still, we all wish it wasn’t necessary.
One year ago this month, we lost one of our own. A victim of intimate partner violence.
On May 21, 2024, Shannan Hickey—a bright, compassionate, and deeply loved registered nurse at Quinte Health—was killed in an act of intimate partner violence. Her Quinte 6 colleagues and family are with us today—thank you for being here and for all you and your team are doing to keep her memory alive.
Shannan was just 26 years old. She studied at Loyalist College and Brock University and joined our team as a new graduate. Shannan was a gifted nurse. An active community member. A loyal friend and colleague to many members of the Quinte Health family. She had a remarkable future ahead of her—and in an instant, it was taken away. Her loss shattered us. It still does. But it also deepened our resolve.
Today’s announcement is more than just a funding update. It is a public commitment—to the people who rely on this program, to the nurses who make it possible, and to every survivor of violence who deserves care, justice, and healing.
To MPP Allsopp—and to the Government of Ontario—thank you. Thank you for recognizing the need. Thank you for listening. And thank you for taking action to support this work not only within our walls, but across the communities we serve.
To the members of the DVSARP team—thank you for what you do every day. Your work matters. It saves lives. And it means more than words can say.
And finally, to everyone gathered here—we all have a role to play in ending domestic violence and sexual assault. It begins with acknowledging the reality. Supporting survivors. Funding programs. And refusing to look away.”
