Report to donors

REPO RT TO DONORS: your gif t is cr itical to the care we pr ovide

With the help of donors like you in 2016-17, Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation has been able to purchase equipment for a number of hospital departments, including the following:

In tune

The sound of music brings comfort to Royal Columbian Hospital’s young patients, thanks to help from Variety – The Children’s Charity. A $20,000 contribution is funding the work of a music therapist in the hospital’s pediatric unit. By working with children who are admitted to the hospital, the music therapist is helping elevate the mood, encourage communication and reduce anxiety.

Music ther apist Miche lle Choi sing s lullabies to a wee kold gir l as f amily looks on .

Critical care to go

A medical team from Royal Columbian Hospital that is called upon by the region’s other hospitals to take over the care of critically ill patients is now travelling much lighter thanks to donors to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. Generous support has allowed the hospital’s Extracorporeal Life Support (ECLS) team – the only mobile retrieval team of its kind in the province – to become the first in British Columbia to acquire the CARDIOHELP system, a portable machine that takes over the function of the heart and lungs when a patient’s health is rapidly deteriorating. The system was purchased because of a generous donation to the Foundation from Jeannette and Stan Hrescak. Maquet-Getinge Group, the company behind the CARDIOHELP system, also made their own gift, which allowed the hospital to obtain two of these machines.

The CARDIO HELP system is the wor ld’s smallest por table he ar t-lung suppor t system.

Helping BC’s busiest cardiac care team

Because of the generosity of our donors, BC’s busiest cardiac care team now has access to completely upgraded technology inside the cardiac catheterization lab. The $3.3 million project included all-new imaging and monitoring equipment. The donor-funded upgrade allowed for the introduction of new software and systems that provide a safer, more reliable delivery of care both for patients and staff. Those suffering from heart attacks across the health region are regularly rushed straight to Royal Columbian’s cath lab for immediate, emergency care. Annually, the interventional cardiology team performs 2,300 angioplasties and 3,100 diagnostic catheterizations – the most in the province.

The in ter ven tion al card iology team n ow uses state-of -the ar t equipmen t in the card iac cath lab, than ks to don or s.

Measuring oxygen supply

People who have suffered a traumatic brain injury are among the patients that may require Brain Tissue Oxygen Monitoring. Set up by neurosurgeons for use in the Intensive Care Unit, the monitoring system alerts healthcare professionals of insufficient oxygen supply to the patient’s brain. It measures cerebral tissue oxygenation and temperature and detects cerebral hypoxia. It is used in conjunction with intracerebral pressure (ICP) monitoring to assist in directing treatment of traumatic brain injuries. The Br ain Tissue Ox ygen Mon itor ing System may be used on patien ts who have suffered tr aumatic br ain inj ur y.

Healing light

Phototherapy light is used to treat jaundice in newborns. Jaundice is caused by increased levels of bilirubin in the blood and usually appears in the first few days of a baby’s life. While usually harmless, high levels of bilirubin can be dangerous to a baby. The phototherapy light waves are used by the baby to eliminate bilirubin from the body. The Dhillon family helped to purchase a new light for pediatrics.

Ph otother apy he lps to tre at jaund ice in ne wborn s by elimin ating bilir ubin fr om the body.

Image enhancement

Royal Columbian Hospital’s medical imaging department is making good use of a new ultrasound machine. The state-ofthe-art system is used regularly for routine and emergency ultrasound studies of just about any body part, from neonates to the elderly. It’s also used as a tool to perform image-guided biopsies. The equipment was purchased courtesy of a donation from the Les family.

Th is ne w ultr asound is a powerf ul and ver satile gener al imaging system that he lps mee t a wide var iety of gener al need s in the med ical imaging de par tmen t.

Micr owave ablation is used to tre at lung , liver , kidne y, bone and sof t tissue tumor s. Destroying tumours

Ablation is performed by the hospital’s Interventional Radiology department to treat lung, liver, kidney, bone and soft tissue tumors. During microwave ablation, microwave energy is sent through a narrow, microwave antenna that has been placed inside a tumor. The microwave energy creates heat, which destroys the diseased cells and tissue. It is a newer method of treating cancer that can target and kill cancerous cells and relieve pain. It is less invasive than surgery with a faster recovery time.