A lot happens inside the walls of a hospital.
Life begins, life-saving measures are undertaken and death ultimately occurs. It’s what makes it the perfect setting for the paranormal television genre.
Haunted Hospitals is one of those shows. It delves into experiences of the afterlife inside medical institutions and now the producers are in search of stories from doctors, nurses, PSW’s and other healthcare professionals in Cambridge.
“We’re looking for stories from all over North America,” Ashley Comeau, associate producer and researcher for the show said.
“Cambridge jumped out to me as a city with such a rich history and an amazingly diverse and representational community.”
For Comeau, the paranormal has always intrigued her.
She initially planned on becoming a funeral director, inspired by the HBO show Six Feet Under, but ended up falling into the world of television and landed a job with Sphere Media.
“I've always had a dark spot in my humour and creativity,” Comeau said.
“Funeral direction didn't pan out, but I'm lucky enough to get to work on shows that deal with the macabre and paranormal. Sphere Media does this genre really well.”
Over the years, Comeau has heard countless eerie stories that have stuck with her.
From objects flying violently across the room and a disembodied choir of screams heard by an entire floor of patients, to spirits entering people's bodies and possessing them.
Comeau understands that it may sound far fetched to some and there’s always going to be skepticism around the stories she helps tell. But based on her experience there’s no doubt what she’s been told is true.
“I will say this, a lot of the scientifically-minded nurses and other medical staff used to not believe that buildings could be haunted, but once it happened to them, they couldn't unsee it,” she said.
“You don't believe, until you do. I wholeheartedly believe that these things happened to all of our contributors.”
The show, which will be releasing season five in the spring of 2024, is starting to gain international recognition.
Comeau says they’ve been contacted by hospital workers in South Africa and Indonesia. But for now they’re focusing on continuing to grow a North American presence.
And whenever a story rolls in, Comeau is ready to listen.
“It’s an absolute honour to collect and witness people's stories,” she said.
“I find it interesting because no two stories with the paranormal are the same. Even if some of the elements happened to multiple people, the way they each tell the story is completely different. I'm constantly chilled by the stories I hear.”
Previous seasons of Haunted Hospitals are available on the specialty TV channel T+E and on the free streaming channel HauntTV in Canada.