Proud supporters of Michael Garron Hospital, the Banik family
Proud supporters of Michael Garron Hospital, the Banik family stands near a patient room named in their honour. From left to right are Opshori, Amrita, Mamata and Joyanta.

Giving to Michael Garron Hospital is a family affair

Hospital employee Mamata Banik and her husband, Joyanta, have several reasons for donating generously – ranging from their community mindedness to gratitude for the outstanding care they’ve received time and again.

It’s clear that Mamata, a registration clerk at Michael Garron Hospital, and Joyanta, a local real estate agent and online journalist, feel a duty to give back. Also important to them is fostering the spirit of philanthropy in their two daughters, Amrita and Opshori, the latter being a high school student and volunteer at our hospital.

“We want to show them that donating is one way you can help the community,” says Joyanta.

Mamata and Joyanta feel they’re succeeding in nurturing that spirit, given that Amrita and Opshori have expressed just how happy they are about their family’s gift.

Their donation is supporting Michael Garron Hospital’s urgent needs – everything from essential medical equipment to patient-focused research – and has been recognized with a named patient room in our Ken and Marilyn Thomson Patient Care Centre. Bright and spacious, rooms in the Thomson Centre reflect the great care and sense of connection that are hallmarks of our hospital.

Paying it forward

As a registration clerk for our Stavro Emergency Department (ED) and our Family Birthing Centre, Mamata plays an important role in delivering positive patient experiences. She knows the difference every staff member can make, having received excellent care here when giving birth to Opshori.

The Baniks also appreciated our team’s skill and compassion in 2018 when Joyanta was transferred here from another hospital for emergency chest surgery, an area where Michael Garron Hospital has considerable expertise.

For three months a tiny fish bone had been lodged deep in Joyanta’s throat, leading to a critical infection. Thoracic surgeon Dr. Najib Safieddine operated on Joyanta in the middle of the night, removing the bone and clearing the infected tissue as much as possible. Joyanta spent the next two days in our Intensive Care Unit before he was stable enough to continue his recovery in another unit.

“I owe a lot to Michael Garron Hospital,” says Joyanta, adding that his family donates so that our hospital can continue offering the same exceptional care he experienced.

Making a difference in more ways than one

With her background as an electronic engineering technologist, Mamata joined our hospital in 2015 as a respiratory therapy technician. In 2021 she began working as a registration clerk, helping people after they’ve been triaged in our ED. Mamata collects patient information, answers wide-ranging questions from them and their loved ones, discharges patients and more.

One of the things she values most is the opportunity to empathize with patients, many of whom are feeling “vulnerable and very anxious,” she says. “I try to understand their situation and play some part in relieving their stress.”

Twice now Mamata has also helped emergency patients quickly get potentially life-saving care when they’ve approached her, struggling to breathe.

She loves having an impact through her job, and for her and Joyanta, taking the extra step of donating to Michael Garron Hospital brings another level of satisfaction.


Michael Garron Hospital provides great care inspired by community. Donate today to support the heart of the east.