Royal Columbian Hospital 50/50 News Stream

New Westminster, BC, November 3, 2021 — Take part in Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery and you could win big while supporting your healthcare heroes care for BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients.

Are YOU the next winner? Final hours to purchase your tickets to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s last 50/50 lottery of 2021!

$91,000 and growing! This is the final day to get tickets to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 draw! How high will the jackpot climb? When your healthcare heroes win, so do you!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Deadline to purchase tickets is tonight, Wednesday, November 3, 2021 at 11:59:59 p.m. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on the lottery’s website.

About Royal Columbian Hospital

From the beginning, Royal Columbian Hospital has stood at the heart of health care in British Columbia. Created by visionary pioneers to provide compassionate care to those building a new province, we have participated in the social and economic changes of British Columbia since 1862. Today, we are one of British Columbia’s busiest hospitals, serving a population of more than 1.8 million people. We are a regional referral hospital for cardiac, trauma, neurosciences, high-risk maternity and neonatal intensive care. No other hospital in the province provides all of these services, at this level of care, on one site. We provide the highest level of care to the most critically ill and injured from throughout the province.

They are people like Martin Bisset. His wife Angie was reading when she first heard the strange sound. She would later describe it as either a gargling or vomiting noise. When their golden retriever started barking and running back and forth from where Martin was working out in their Nanaimo home, she decided to go check. What she found was terrifying. By the next day, the 39-year-old Martin would be helicoptered to Royal Columbian Hospital for a neurosurgical procedure to save the life of the father of two.

Martin Bisset, with wife Angie and their two children

“Basically, he was stuck in the kneeling position, straining forward, making this weird roaring sound,” Angie recalls. “He was unresponsive. He was staring straight ahead, straining and sweating.”

A CT scan at their local hospital discovered a ruptured brain aneurysm. Martin was suffering from a haemorrhagic stroke. It’s fatal in close to half of all cases.

From Nanaimo, Martin was rushed to Victoria. He was brought to the intensive care unit as plans were put in place to fly him urgently to Royal Columbian Hospital and neurosurgeon Dr. Navraj Heran.

“He presented with a ruptured aneurysm where the blood leaks out of a blood vessel and spills into the space around the brain,” explains Dr. Heran, who estimates he treats about 120 cases like this each year. “It increases pressure and irritates the lining of the brain.”

In Fraser Health, all these cases are treated by Dr Heran without requiring invasive surgery to open the skull. Utilizing an innovative procedure that is only performed at a couple of hospitals in the province, Dr. Heran guides a catheter through a small incision in the thigh all the way up to the site of the aneurysm. He then uses small coils to fix the problem.

“Basically we put those coils into the aneurysm so it congeals the blood inside the weakness,” explains Dr. Heran.

Angie says the procedure took no longer than an hour, and they soon shifted their attention to Martin’s recovery. He stayed at Royal Columbian for just over two weeks, and both he and Angie have developed a strong appreciation for the care they were provided.

“We had absolutely amazing nurses and therapists,” says Angie. “They were so educated and aware. When you are in a situation that is so scary and unusual, and you have these people at your back that are the best of the best but also driven to continue to learn, there’s no words that express how comforting that is.”

Don’t miss out! Get your tickets before it’s too late. Support our healthcare heroes and help to provide care to those in need. Not only are you supporting healthcare in BC, but you can win big too!

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #129087. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.

New Westminster, BC, November 2, 2021 — Take part in Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery and you could win big while supporting your healthcare heroes care for BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients.

Are YOU the next winner? Purchase your tickets to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s last 50/50 lottery of 2021!

$83,000 and growing! These are the final days to get tickets to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 draw! How high will the jackpot climb? When your healthcare heroes win, so do you!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Deadline to purchase tickets is Wednesday, November 3, 2021 at 11:59:59 p.m. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on the lottery’s website.

About Royal Columbian Hospital

From the beginning, Royal Columbian Hospital has stood at the heart of health care in British Columbia. Created by visionary pioneers to provide compassionate care to those building a new province, we have participated in the social and economic changes of British Columbia since 1862. Today, we are one of British Columbia’s busiest hospitals, serving a population of more than 1.8 million people. We are a regional referral hospital for cardiac, trauma, neurosciences, high-risk maternity and neonatal intensive care. No other hospital in the province provides all of these services, at this level of care, on one site. We provide the highest level of care to the most critically ill and injured from throughout the province.

Revolutionizing Patient Care

Royal Columbian Hospital is undergoing one of the most ambitious hospital redevelopments in Canadian history. This redevelopment goes beyond rebuilding a hospital. It is transformational. This multi-year, multi-phase $1.49 billion redevelopment will revolutionize the way we deliver care to our patients by creating a world-class, state-of-the-art hospital that provides uncompromising care.

The cornerstone of the project – a new Acute Care Tower – will elevate lifesaving care that serves one third of our province’s population in the largest and fastest growing health region in BC.

Our vision is to create a world-class hospital: a state-of-the art facility that provides uncompromising care and remarkable patient experiences. With a larger footprint and the introduction of cutting-edge technology, we will continue to respond to the needs of patients in their most urgent, life-altering moments.

A Transformation in Interventional Care

Intervention is at the core of modern health care. Every day, interventional specialists at Royal Columbian Hospital step forward to turn the tide for their patients – often with minimally-invasive procedures including heart and stroke emergencies.

Our world-class medical teams perform more open-heart surgeries and treat more emergency heart attacks than any other hospital in BC. For this reason, RCH is often considered the region’s emergency room for the heart. Royal Columbian is home to the busiest cardiac intervention unit in Canada, performing more angioplasties than any other hospital in the country. We are also our region’s only site performing open-heart surgery, with more than 1,000 cases annually. This is the most of any hospital in BC. RCH also has the province’s only mobile ECLS (extracorporeal life support) team, ready to respond at a moment’s notice to retrieve from other hospitals patients whose heart and/or lungs are failing. Often, this is a patient’s very last chance at life.

Meanwhile, the Interventional Radiology (IR) department at RCH provides some of the most complex image-guided procedures in the Fraser Health region and the province. These procedures are utilized for patients experiencing challenging medical conditions with origins in the vascular, gastrointestinal, pulmonary, musculoskeletal and nervous systems, among others. Royal Columbian plays an integral role in stroke care in our region, as the cornerstone of a 24/7 Acute Stroke Team, including comprehensive stroke care by our interventional radiologists. RCH has also led the implementation of innovative image-guided cancer treatments in the region.

The creation of an interventional superfloor in the Acute Care Tower with multiple interventional suites will equip us with advanced, state-of-the art imaging technology that allows for absolute precision. This floor will house eight interventional suites that will be universal, meaning that if needed, any suite could be used for either interventional cardiology or radiology. At opening, four suites will be used exclusively for interventional cardiac procedures and four suites for interventional radiology. These new suites will have increased functionality. Unlike our current catheterization labs, they will be equipped and designed for procedures like trans-aortic valve implantation (TAVI), to replace failing heart valves, and cardiac ablation to correct arrhythmias.

Without question, cutting-edge technology is an essential component of interventional procedures. Specialists rely on monitoring and real-time imaging technology to complete critical procedures. Each interventional suite will be equipped with advanced, state-of-the-art technology that allows for absolute precision – and the best possible outcomes for patients.

As well as supporting interventional care, Royal Columbian’s redevelopment will include a new, larger Emergency department with a medical imaging unit strategically placed within the ER, new and larger maternity, pediatric, and neonatal intensive care units, and multiple floors for acute and critical care patients. 

This transformation is one example of how you can help by purchasing your tickets.

Get your tickets today. Support our healthcare heroes and help to provide care to those in need. Not only are you supporting healthcare in BC, but you can win big too!

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #129087. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.

New Westminster, BC, November 1, 2021 — Help support exceptional care for BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients by taking part in our final draw of 2021! Buy your tickets to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery and you could win big while supporting your healthcare heroes.

How high will the jackpot climb? Already surpassing $72,000, each ticket sold pushes the jackpot even higher! Get yours before time is up.

Final days before the purchase deadline, get your tickets NOW! Why? Because when your healthcare heroes win, so do you!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on the lottery’s website.

Deadline to purchase tickets is Wednesday November 3rd, 2021 at 11:59:59pm. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot!

About Royal Columbian Hospital

From the beginning, Royal Columbian Hospital has stood at the heart of health care in British Columbia. Created by visionary pioneers to provide compassionate care to those building a new province, we have participated in the social and economic changes of British Columbia since 1862. Today, we are one of British Columbia’s busiest hospitals, serving a population of more than 1.8 million people. We are a regional referral hospital for cardiac, trauma, neurosciences, high-risk maternity and neonatal intensive care. No other hospital in the province provides all of these services, at this level of care, on one site. We provide the highest level of care to the most critically ill and injured from throughout the province.

Revolutionizing Patient Care

Royal Columbian Hospital is undergoing one of the most ambitious hospital redevelopments in Canadian history. This redevelopment goes beyond rebuilding a hospital. It is transformational. This multi-year, multi-phase $1.49 billion redevelopment will revolutionize the way we deliver care to our patients by creating a world-class, state-of-the-art hospital that provides uncompromising care.

The cornerstone of the project – a new Acute Care Tower – will elevate lifesaving care that serves one third of our province’s population in the largest and fastest growing health region in BC.

Our vision is to create a world-class hospital: a state-of-the art facility that provides uncompromising care and remarkable patient experiences. With a larger footprint and the introduction of cutting-edge technology, we will continue to respond to the needs of patients in their most urgent, life-altering moments.

A Transformation in emergency and trauma care

Trauma physicians refer to the first hour after a traumatic injury as the ‘golden hour’ – they are the critical minutes for medical and surgical intervention.   When a traumatic incident occurs, the clock starts to tick. Every moment counts – and life hangs in the balance.

The Emergency Department, one of the most highly utilized in the province, is the entry point to trauma care, and both services will receive significant additions during the hospital’s redevelopment. The new Acute Care Tower will house a larger Emergency department with 75 state-of-the-art treatment bays – increasing total space by more than half.

As one of two Level 1 Trauma Centres for adults in BC, Royal Columbian is equipped, trained and certified to deal with large-scale catastrophes. It receives more Air Ambulance patients directly from accident scenes than any other hospital in the province.

In the new Acute Care Tower, the Emergency Department will include four trauma bays and a new Imaging Unit, strategically placed within the Emergency Department to drastically speed up access to diagnostic procedures.

Also, one operating room will be purpose-built and always available for trauma patients, to help avoid interrupting scheduled surgeries.

These additions and improvements will speed up admission, assessment and treatment. The hospital will have more space to accommodate all types of ER patients, and trauma patients can avoid being moved from one part of the hospital to another to get the scans they need.

As well as supporting emergency and trauma care, Royal Columbian’s redevelopment will include an interventional super floor with operating rooms and interventional radiology and cardiology suites, new and larger maternity, pediatric, and neonatal intensive care units, and multiple floors for acute and critical care patients. 

This transformation is one example of how you can help by purchasing your tickets.

Get your tickets today. Support our healthcare heroes and help to provide care to those in need.

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #129087. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.

New Westminster, BC, October 26, 2021 — Support exceptional care for BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients and you could win! Take part in Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery today!

Entering the final days for the final jackpot of the year.
Purchase your tickets now to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery.

The jackpot has already reached $54,000, how high will the jackpot climb? When your healthcare heroes win, so do you! Calvin Parsons, the June winner, took home a prize of $38,955 and Don McLaren, the September winner, took home a prize of $47,395. You could be next when we draw on November 4!

A win for you = a win for our heroes!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on the lottery’s website.

Deadline to purchase tickets is Wednesday, November 3, 2021 at 11:59:59 p.m. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot!

About Royal Columbian Hospital

From the beginning, Royal Columbian Hospital has stood at the heart of health care in British Columbia. Created by visionary pioneers to provide compassionate care to those building a new province, we have participated in the social and economic changes of British Columbia since 1862. Today, we are one of British Columbia’s busiest hospitals, serving a population of more than 1.8 million people. We are a regional referral hospital for cardiac, trauma, neurosciences, high-risk maternity and neonatal intensive care. No other hospital in the province provides all of these services, at this level of care, on one site. We provide the highest level of care to the most critically ill and injured from throughout the province.

Royal Columbian is also undergoing one of the most ambitious hospital redevelopments in Canadian history – a $1.49 billion transformation which the Foundation is supporting every step of the way.

A Transformation in Critical Care

Caring for some of the province’s most seriously ill and injured patients, Royal Columbian Hospital is in many ways defined by its critical care services. With a range of services that include trauma care, heart and lung life support, comprehensive stroke care, and most recently in its role as a primary COVID-19 site during the pandemic, Royal Columbian is one of BC’s busiest and most specialized critical care hospitals.

Royal Columbian’s redevelopment will create a 60-bed Critical Care Unit on the fourth floor of the new Acute Care Tower to increase our capacity. This unit will serve all of Fraser Health and will contain 28 Intensive Care Unit beds, 17 High Acuity Unit beds, and 15 Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit beds. Additionally, the fourth floor will include a 17-bed Cardiac Intensive Care Unit, which will care for critically ill non-surgical cardiac patients, and seven additional medical surgical beds.

Patients and families are an integral part of the critical care patient journey. Patients admitted to the Critical Care Unit have often experienced a traumatic and unexpected event. The team provides patient/family-centred care in the critical care inpatient setting. This is achieved by providing for family needs and involving families in the planning and delivery of care. In support of improving the individual experience of care, patient families will be an important part of the care team by ensuring there are suitable nearby amenities and zones within the patient room. There is a dedicated volunteer on the Critical Care Unit floor during the day to support families.

At the core of critical care services is the Intensive Care Unit. The ICU is a specialized unit designed to care for critically ill or injured patients whose conditions are life-threatening and who require comprehensive critical care and constant monitoring. Patients requiring this level of care are guaranteed access without exception, and the patients that are seen require the most advanced respiratory (lung/breathing) support in all its forms of mechanical ventilation and extracorporeal respiratory support (ECLS/heart/lung bypass machine), and have the most severe forms of multi-organ failure (brain, kidneys, heart, gastrointestinal tract).

Patients treated are 16 and older, including maternity patients and those suffering from traumatic injuries, car collisions, head injuries, drowning, cardiac arrest, severe infections like COVID-19, sepsis (infection), post-op surgical patients and brain tumours.

The High Acuity Unit (HAU) is a specially staffed and equipped section of a Critical Care program that provides a level of care between intensive care and general ward care. The HAU is considered a step-down or transitional unit for ICU patients as their condition improves to the point they no longer need the level of care provided in the ICU. The unit provides intensive monitoring without life support as defined by invasive ventilation, and supports trauma as well as both surgical and non-surgical patients.

The Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit (CSICU) provides the highest level of critical care for the region’s cardiac population. Royal Columbian Hospital is the only centre in Fraser Health providing both cardiac surgery and interventional cardiac services.

Get your tickets today. Stand by our healthcare heroes and help to provide care to those in need. Not only are you supporting healthcare in BC, but you can win big too!

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #129087. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.

New Westminster, BC, October 18, 2021 — Support exceptional care for BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients and you could win! Take part in Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery today!

The jackpot has reached more than $37,000! How high will the final jackpot of the year climb? When your healthcare heroes win, so do you!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on the website.

Deadline to purchase tickets is Wednesday, November 3^rd, 2021 at 11:59:59pm. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot!

About Royal Columbian Hospital

If you or a loved one has come through our doors, you know why a third of British Columbians rely on Royal Columbian Hospital for critical care.

We are the only hospital in BC with trauma, cardiac, neurosciences, high-risk maternity & neonatal intensive care on one site. We are also one of Fraser Health’s three primary COVID-19 sites. We look after some of our province’s most seriously ill and injured patients. In addition, we are a teaching hospital and a UBC Clinical Academic Campus.

Royal Columbian is also undergoing one of the most ambitious hospital redevelopments in Canadian history – a $1.49 billion transformation which the Foundation is supporting every step of the way.

A Transformation in care for infants, children and their families

As a high-risk maternity centre, Royal Columbian is the only facility in BC with surgical and interventional services to treat pregnant patients with certain complex issues involving trauma or cardiology. The hospital provides comprehensive services for infants, children and their families, all of which will see major change with expanded facilities as part of redevelopment plans. With an entire floor devoted to both maternity and neonatal intensive care, along with a new pediatric department, there will be a significant emphasis on family-centered care.

As a referral centre for high-risk maternity, RCH delivers 3,000 babies annually – and with the Fraser Health region’s projected population growth, this number is sure to climb. These include pregnancies with co-existing health conditions, those at risk of delivering prematurely, and those diagnosed with severe obstetric complications. The new Acute Care Tower will house a new 48-bed Maternity department, with most rooms slated to be single-patient rooms to allow families the opportunity to bond in a private and dignified setting. In addition, inpatient and outpatient services for maternity care will be located together, allowing for a more connected health network and less stress for patients.

Our Variety Neonatal Intensive Care Unit cares for hundreds of critically ill babies each year. Born as young as 23 weeks, these babies come to us facing a number of life-threatening medical challenges. Since 1997, the Canadian Neonatal Network has recognized RCH’s NICU as consistently ranking among the top in the country for achieving excellent survival rates for babies who are born before their due date and very low rates of complications related to prematurity. To support babies in a precarious state of health, it’s essential that we have both the facilities and access to comprehensive technology. We envision a new NICU with the technology to care for our most fragile patients in a setting that allows families to bond in uncertain and overwhelming moments. The NICU will feature 24 single-patient rooms designed to support babies who require specialized one-to-one care. Most notably, these private rooms, with direct access to natural light, will provide the space and furnishings for families to stay with their baby overnight and develop long-term bonds. The NICU will also include respite space for families to gather, prepare snacks and participate in education sessions. In addition to offering cutting-edge technology, our goal is to create an environment that promotes healing, growth, and encourages bonding – which will give premature babies the best possible start in life. 

In addition to providing support during high-risk pregnancies and for newborns requiring critical care, Royal Columbian Hospital is a regional pediatric care centre. In the redevelopment, the Pediatric department will grow by four additional beds for a total of 16. The new pediatric unit will provide every child and family with their own private room with an ensuite washroom and a sleeping area. These changes are not only designed to increase capacity and efficiency; they will also allow for increased privacy, patient dignity, and family bonding. The pediatric unit, at just over 8,600 square feet, will also feature a playroom which will be a designated ‘no treatment’ area and will be equipped with games and toys for patients to enjoy. A kitchenette and family lounge will also be included.

Your ticket purchase helps us with these redevelopment plans, helps our healthcare heroes and helps to save lives. Not only are you supporting healthcare in BC, but you can win big too!

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #129087. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.

New Westminster, BC, October 12, 2021 — Help support exceptional care for BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients. Take part in Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery and you could win big while giving back and supporting your healthcare heroes.

The RCH 50/50 jackpot has already reached $23,000; how high will it climb?

When your healthcare heroes win, so do you! Calvin Parsons, the June winner, took home a prize of $38,955 and Don McLaren, the September winner, took home a prize of $47,395. You could be next when they draw their final winner of 2021!

A win for you = a win for our heroes!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on the website.

Deadline to purchase tickets is Wednesday November 3, 2021 at 11:59:59pm. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot! What will you do if you win?

About Royal Columbian Hospital

If you or a loved one has come through our doors, you know why a third of British Columbians rely on Royal Columbian Hospital for critical care.

We are the only hospital in BC with trauma, cardiac, neurosciences, high-risk maternity & neonatal intensive care on one site. We are also one of Fraser Health’s three primary COVID-19 sites. We look after some of our province’s most seriously ill and injured patients. In addition, we are a teaching hospital and a UBC Clinical Academic Campus.

For our healthcare heroes, the fight isn’t over yet, but you can help them keep fighting by entering now for your chance to win big.

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #129087. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.

New Westminster, BC, October 5, 2021 — Help support exceptional care for BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients. Take part in Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery and you could win big while giving back and supporting your healthcare heroes.

How high will the jackpot climb? When your healthcare heroes win, so do you! Don McLaren, our September winner, took home a prize of $47,395. You could be next when we draw on November 4^th!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on the website.

Deadline to purchase tickets is Wednesday November 3^rd, 2021 at 11:59:59pm. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot!

About Royal Columbian Hospital

What is the greatest challenge you have ever had to overcome? Vince Li faced his in the spring of 2020, when a severe virus took hold and forced him into the toughest fight of his life.

It started with a fever that quickly spiked. After several days with no improvement, Vince made his way to the local emergency room. There, an X-ray and blood tests revealed the tell-tale signs of COVID-19. With extremely low oxygen levels, he was immediately sedated, intubated, and sent to Royal Columbian Hospital.

With shocking speed, Vince had gone from being a healthy, active 26-year-old to critically ill. A personal trainer, competing in boxing and jujitsu tournaments, Vince says, “While I never expected something like this to happen to me, I am grateful to have been brought into the care of a team that was ready and able to give me my best chance at life”. 

Already serving one-third of British Columbians, Royal Columbian Hospital’s vital role in ensuring the health of our communities has become even more significant during the global COVID-19 pandemic. But help is needed to ensure that Royal Columbian remains ready to take on life’s most critical moments, now and always.

What stood out for Vince during his time at Royal Columbian is the quality of care he received. Everyone – from the doctors, to the nurses and physiotherapists – fought tirelessly for his recovery, all while bravely facing countless challenges and pressures brought by the pandemic.

Following Vince’s hospital stay, he found he was struggling to make it up a flight of stairs without panting. Now, over a year later, Vince has successfully run a half-marathon. When we are facing our biggest fears and greatest challenges, we all deserve a team in our corner. Help our healthcare heroes to fight for patients like Vince and so many others, by purchasing your tickets to the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation 5050 Lottery today.

If you or a loved one has come through our doors, you know why a third of British Columbians rely on Royal Columbian Hospital for critical care.

We are the only hospital in BC with trauma, cardiac, neurosciences, high-risk maternity & neonatal intensive care on one site. We are also one of Fraser Health’s three primary COVID-19 sites. We look after some of our province’s most seriously ill and injured patients. In addition, we are a teaching hospital and a UBC Clinical Academic Campus.

For our healthcare heroes, the fight isn’t over yet, but you can help them keep fighting by entering now for your chance to win big.

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #129087. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.

New Westminster, BC, September 1, 2021 — Support BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients by taking part in Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery. You could win big while supporting your healthcare heroes!

With a jackpot that has already surpassed $80,000, how high will it climb? When your healthcare heroes win, so do you!

Deadline to purchase tickets is tonight, September 1^st, 2021 at 11:59:59pm. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on their website.

About Royal Columbian Hospital

From the beginning, Royal Columbian Hospital has stood at the heart of health care in British Columbia. Created by visionary pioneers to provide compassionate care to those building a new province, we have participated in the social and economic changes of British Columbia since 1862. Today, we are one of British Columbia’s busiest hospitals, serving a population of more than 1.8 million people. We are a regional referral hospital for cardiac, trauma, neurosciences, high-risk maternity and neonatal intensive care. No other hospital in the province provides all of these services, at this level of care, on one site. We provide the highest level of care to the most critically ill and injured from throughout the province.

The importance of testing to confirm COVID-19 infections has drawn new attention to the role of our healthcare labs. At Royal Columbian Hospital, the lab has a long history that goes back more than 100 years. Nowadays, with more than 5-million tests performed a year and with the generous support of donors to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation, the hospital’s Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Department helps in over 80-percent of medical diagnoses. And that was before the pandemic struck.

Dr. Reza Alaghehbandan

“If we don’t know what the disease is, then we won’t be able to treat the disease,” says department head Dr. Reza Alaghehbandan, who explains how the lab can provide answers when basic physical exams or radiographic images don’t identify what ails a patient. “One of our main goals as lab professionals has always been supporting and serving public health. When the pandemic came, our role became much more pronounced, both at the hospital and the community levels.”

In the early months of the pandemic in 2020, with Royal Columbian designated as one of the province’s primary COVID-19 sites, the hospital’s lab worked with the region’s medical microbiology centre and with the BC Centre for Disease Control to handle and transfer COVID-19 tests and relay the results back to medical teams.

“During that first phase of the disease, we immediately developed a very efficient and logistical process,” says Dr. Alaghehbandan.

A few months later, the lab obtained the technology to conduct its own on-site COVID-19 testing. By opening a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing room in the lab – complete with Dr. Bonnie Henry’s famous mantra ‘Be Kind. Be Calm. Be Safe.’ displayed on the wall, the hospital gained the ability to test inpatients at the hospital.

“The impact of that was so much that it increases our capacity, it enhances the so-called turnaround time, getting the results back into the hands of our colleagues,” says Dr. Alaghehbandan.

The lab then took on another key pandemic-related role as vaccinations started arriving in our region. With the first mRNA vaccines needing to be kept at very cold temperatures, Royal Columbian provided the infrastructure, expertise, and leadership to help manage the delivery and distribution of the vials.

“And this happened on a 24/7 basis,” says Dr. Alaghehbandan, “because sometimes the shipments would come at odd hours, and we had dedicated staff who were here days and nights to make sure that the flow, the inventory is safe and efficient.”

While the pandemic has dominated global attention, the hospital’s lab has also carried on its usual work testing for cancer, autoimmune disorders, chromosome analysis, and more. In recent years, support from donors to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation has helped bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of technology, including:

• Thinprep 5000 Processor: an essential piece of equipment to support rapid and less invasive cancer diagnosis.
• Digital Slide Scanner: converts glass slides into high-resolution digital images, allowing for timely and accurate consultations that lead to patient diagnoses.
• FISH Analyzer: used to detect subtle specific chromosome abnormalities.
• Optilite Protein Analyzer: helps to provide protein testing, including for patients on chemotherapy.
• Coverslip: helps in the safe transport of cancer-related tests for a specialized area called immunohistochemistry (IHC).
• Multi-head microscope: allows multiple pathologists to simultaneously view each sample, enabling them to pool their collective knowledge and expertise.

“Thank you donors for honouring us with your support,” remarks Dr. Alaghehbandan.

Get your tickets today. Stand by our healthcare heroes and help to fund crucial equipment needed for life saving care. Not only are you supporting healthcare in BC, but you can win big too!

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #128587. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.

New Westminster, BC, August 30, 2021 — Support BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients by taking part in Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery. You could win big while supporting your healthcare heroes!

$61,000 and growing! How high will the jackpot climb? When your healthcare heroes win, so do you!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Deadline to purchase tickets is this Wednesday, September 1^st, 2021 at 11:59:59pm. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on their website.

About Royal Columbian Hospital

From the beginning, Royal Columbian Hospital has stood at the heart of health care in British Columbia. Created by visionary pioneers to provide compassionate care to those building a new province, we have participated in the social and economic changes of British Columbia since 1862. Today, we are one of British Columbia’s busiest hospitals, serving a population of more than 1.8 million people. We are a regional referral hospital for cardiac, trauma, neurosciences, high-risk maternity and neonatal intensive care. No other hospital in the province provides all of these services, at this level of care, on one site. We provide the highest level of care to the most critically ill and injured from throughout the province.

Mental Health and the Pandemic

Even if you allow yourself permission to imagine a return to pre-pandemic life, the complete story of COVID-19’s toll on society will likely not emerge for a while still. This includes the full effect on our mental health stemming from the anxiety, fear, isolation, financial hardship, and other stressors felt by many since early 2020.

Dr. Janel Casey

“Based on other epidemics or natural disasters, it usually took a few years for those mental health presentations to go back to a normal level after the end of those crises,” observes Dr. Janel Casey, Royal Columbian Hospital’s Head of the Department of Psychiatry. “I do think it will gradually get better over time.”

Not surprisingly, the pandemic has been at the forefront of the care Dr. Casey and other mental health providers have delivered in the last year and a half. A significant number of patients that Dr. Casey has seen have been associating their current mental health challenges with COVID-19.

“It comes up very frequently when you are getting their history,” says Dr. Casey.

Mental health dialogue

While the pandemic has been a global preoccupation, and there has been an increased dialogue about mental health throughout this crisis, the number of psychiatric admissions to the Fraser Health region’s hospitals has not changed substantially during the first year.

Between March 2020 and January 2021, bed occupancy remained relatively stable with 9,111 admissions to Mental Health and Substance Use inpatient psychiatric beds, compared to 9,164 admissions during the same period the previous year.

But this includes notable decreases in visits to hospitals during the first months of 2020, when people were self-isolating.

“Same as all areas of medicine, we saw a lack of referrals for a few months at the very beginning of the pandemic,” recalls Dr. Casey. “Since then, the numbers have gradually continued to increase. We are seeing a lot more referrals coming through the hospital and our outpatient department. We are providing many of our outpatient assessments via videoconferencing during the pandemic.”

And the range of mental health concerns is broad.

“We see more depression and anxiety, but also crisis situations where people are struggling with school, isolation, family and inter-personal difficulties, and the consequences of trying to cope in unhealthy ways like drinking more alcohol or using drugs,” says Dr. Casey.

She notes a concerning rise in depression and suicidal thoughts in children and teenagers.

“They are not going into class in person as much, and they don’t have the same extracurricular activities,” says Dr. Casey. “Then of course they are just not getting social activities in general, such as going out with friends, birthday parties, and other celebrations.”

Once someone is admitted to hospital for mental health care, the challenge becomes how to help them return to their communities when the usual supports may no longer be readily accessible.

“It’s hard to discharge them back to their same socially isolated housing situation,” she notes. “And it’s also hard because a lot of the services have changed the way in which they work, understandably.”

Moving day

One welcome development in 2020 was the psychiatry department’s move from the now-demolished Sherbrooke Centre building to the new Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre, which donors to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation have supported.

Originally scheduled to open in April 2020, the $258.9 million facility was instead one of two buildings identified by the province as being available should our healthcare system become overwhelmed by a surge in COVID-19 cases.

As BC successfully flattened the curve that spring, the mental health centre finally opened to patients in July 2020. Dr. Casey says the feedback has been largely positive.

“They really like the large private rooms with en suite bathroom. They like having more common space, and they also really love the outdoor balconies,” she notes.

For caregivers, it’s already hard to imagine how they managed in their former facilities. As they continue to adjust to their new homes, they also wonder what the next year will bring as the pandemic moves into whatever its next phase will be.

“For all of us who are alive now, this is a completely new situation that we have never experienced before, so we will learn a lot.”

People of all ages can call the 24/7 Fraser Health Crisis Line (604-951-8855 or toll-free at 1-877-820–7444) if they are experiencing suicidal thoughts or feelings, mental health problems, substance use issues, family violence, abuse, relationship conflicts, or loss.

Get your tickets today. Stand by our healthcare heroes and help to provide care to those in need. Not only are you supporting healthcare in BC, but you can win big too!

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #128587. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.

New Westminster, BC, August 24, 2021 — Take part in Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s 50/50 lottery and you could win big while supporting your healthcare heroes care for BC’s most seriously ill and injured patients.

$45,000 and growing! How high will the jackpot climb? When your healthcare heroes win, so do you!

Tickets are 10 for $10, 50 for $20 and 200 for $40!

Deadline to purchase tickets is Wednesday, September 1, 2021 at 11:59:59pm. Enter now for a chance to win big and help Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation. The lucky winner gets half the final jackpot!

Buy tickets today! Tickets must be purchased on their website.

About Royal Columbian Hospital

From the beginning, Royal Columbian Hospital has stood at the heart of health care in British Columbia. Created by visionary pioneers to provide compassionate care to those building a new province, we have participated in the social and economic changes of British Columbia since 1862. Today, we are one of British Columbia’s busiest hospitals, serving a population of more than 1.8 million people. We are a regional referral hospital for cardiac, trauma, neurosciences, high-risk maternity and neonatal intensive care. No other hospital in the province provides all of these services, at this level of care, on one site. We provide the highest level of care to the most critically ill and injured from throughout the province.

Revolutionizing Patient Care

Royal Columbian Hospital is undergoing one of the most ambitious hospital redevelopments in Canadian history. This redevelopment goes beyond rebuilding a hospital. It is transformational. This multi-year, multi-phase $1.49 billion redevelopment will revolutionize the way we deliver care to our patients by creating a world-class, state-of-the-art hospital that provides uncompromising care.

The cornerstone of the project – a new Acute Care Tower – will elevate lifesaving care that serves one third of our province’s population in the largest and fastest growing health region in BC.

Our vision is to create a world-class hospital: a state-of-the art facility that provides uncompromising care and remarkable patient experiences. With a larger footprint and the introduction of cutting-edge technology, we will continue to respond to the needs of patients in their most urgent, life-altering moments.

A Transformation in Interventional Care

Intervention is at the core of modern health care. Every day, interventional specialists at Royal Columbian Hospital step forward to turn the tide for their patients – often with minimally-invasive procedures including heart and stroke emergencies.

Our world-class medical teams perform more open-heart surgeries and treat more emergency heart attacks than any other hospital in BC. For this reason, RCH is often considered the region’s emergency room for the heart. Royal Columbian is home to the busiest cardiac intervention unit in Canada, performing more angioplasties than any other hospital in the country. We are also our region’s only site performing open-heart surgery, with more than 1,000 cases annually. This is the most of any hospital in BC. RCH also has the province’s only mobile ECLS (extracorporeal life support) team, ready to respond at a moment’s notice to retrieve from other hospitals patients whose heart and/or lungs are failing. Often, this is a patient’s very last chance at life.

Meanwhile, the Interventional Radiology (IR) department at RCH provides some of the most complex image-guided procedures in the Fraser Health region and the province. These procedures are utilized for patients experiencing challenging medical conditions with origins in the vascular, gastrointestinal, pulmonary, musculoskeletal and nervous systems, among others. Royal Columbian plays an integral role in stroke care in our region, as the cornerstone of a 24/7 Acute Stroke Team, including comprehensive stroke care by our interventional radiologists. RCH has also led the implementation of innovative image-guided cancer treatments in the region.

The creation of an interventional superfloor in the Acute Care Tower with multiple interventional suites will equip us with advanced, state-of-the art imaging technology that allows for absolute precision. This floor will house eight interventional suites that will be universal, meaning that if needed, any suite could be used for either interventional cardiology or radiology. At opening, four suites will be used exclusively for interventional cardiac procedures and four suites for interventional radiology. These new suites will have increased functionality. Unlike our current catheterization labs, they will be equipped and designed for procedures like trans-aortic valve implantation (TAVI), to replace failing heart valves, and cardiac ablation to correct arrhythmias.

Without question, cutting-edge technology is an essential component of interventional procedures. Specialists rely on monitoring and real-time imaging technology to complete critical procedures. Each interventional suite will be equipped with advanced, state-of-the-art technology that allows for absolute precision – and the best possible outcomes for patients.

As well as supporting interventional care, Royal Columbian’s redevelopment will include a new, larger Emergency department with a medical imaging unit strategically placed within the ER, new and larger maternity, pediatric, and neonatal intensive care units, and multiple floors for acute and critical care patients. 

This transformation is one example of how you can help by purchasing your tickets.

Get your tickets today. Support our healthcare heroes and help to provide care to those in need. Not only are you supporting healthcare in BC, but you can win big too!

Discover more about the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation.

*open to BC residents only, must be 19+ to play, BCLC Licence #128587. Actual odds of winning are dependent on the number of tickets sold. Know your limit, play within it.