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$15 Million Donation Launches
Research Centre at VGH
2009OTP0052-000453
March 20, 2009 | Office of the Premier
VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation |
| VANCOUVER - A new, state-of-the-art research centre will be established at Vancouver General Hospital, housing three internationally-recognized research programs and named after Robert H.N. Ho in honour of his $15-million donation, Premier Gordon Campbell announced today.
"British Columbia is already an acknowledged international leader in medical research and innovation. The Robert H.N. Ho Research Centre will bolster our ability to recruit and retain scientists and health professionals, and will encourage further discoveries and breakthroughs that save lives," said Premier Campbell. "I want |  | to thank Mr. Robert Ho for his generous donation, which is helping to make this cutting-edge research facility a reality here at Vancouver General Hospital."
The seven-storey, 69,350 sq. ft. (6,442 sq.m.) facility will house three of VGH's key research programs: the Vancouver Prostate Centre at VGH; the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility; and the Ovarian Cancer Research Initiative.
"I have lived my life according to the motto that has guided our family for three generations, 'Before you receive, you must first give,'" said Mr. Ho. "This gift was inspired by my friendship with VGH's Dr. Anthony Fung, who convinced me to contribute to these important research projects. I am proud to play a part in helping improve the lives of people from across B.C. and around the world."
The Robert H.N. Ho Research Centre will house hundreds of scientists and clinicians pioneering new treatments and cures for patients with prostate and ovarian cancers, as well as hip and mobility issues. Mr. Ho's gift will also fund enhancements in the cardiac investigation and intervention unit, including new equipment and research to improve cardiac care for patients in British Columbia and around the world.
The donation paves the way for access to further funds including the BC Knowledge Development Fund and federal funds including the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI). The cost to build the new research centre is approximately $41.5 million with a total cost including personnel and equipment of more than $60 million. The total provincial government contribution to the new research centre through BCKDF and the Ministry of Health Services is more than $22 million.
"The future of specialized health care in British Columbia depends on donors like Mr. Robert Ho," said Ron Dumouchelle, president and CEO of the VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation. "VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation thanks Mr. Ho for his generosity and leadership to help meet the growing need for complex care at our hospitals for people from across our province."
Mr. Ho is well known for his global philanthropic vision and leadership. He is the chairman of The Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation and of Tung Lin Kok Yuen Canada Foundation, and has made a number of significant gifts to organizations around the world including Colgate University in New York; Hong Kong University; the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England; Stanford University; and the University of British Columbia. Mr. Ho has also previously supported cardiology equipment and patient care at VGH.
"Today's announcement is a powerful example of what can be achieved through partnerships," said Dr. Eliot Phillipson, president and CEO of the Canada Foundation for Innovation. "The Robert H.N. Ho Research Centre will help ensure Canada's ongoing leadership in research and innovation, and the CFI is extremely proud to be a partner in this exciting project."
"The researchers at our hospitals are known around the world for medical research that is changing the lives of patients today and offering new hope for the future," said Dr. Grady Meneilly, head of the Department of Medicine at VGH and UBC. "The new Robert H.N. Ho Research Centre will be a tremendous resource for our province, providing new space for researchers, who in turn will develop new breakthroughs to ensure British Columbia remains at the vanguard of medical discovery and innovation for years to come."
In honour of Mr. Ho's generosity, the new building will be officially known as the Robert H.N. Ho Research Centre and will be built across from the Jim Pattison Pavilion at VGH, located at Laurel Street and West 10th Avenue. When building commences this summer, it is expected to create more than 250 new construction jobs.
The VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation is a registered charity raising funding for the latest, most sophisticated medical equipment, world-class research and improvements to patient care for VGH, UBC Hospital, GF Strong Rehab Centre and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute. For nearly 30 years, the Foundation and its donors have been a bridge between the essential health care that governments provide and the most advanced health care possible.
Media Contacts:
Bridgitte Anderson
Press Secretary
Office of the Premier
604.307.7177 | Jon Hicke
Director of Marketing & Communications
VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation
604.875.5196 |
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Lisa Carver
Regional Communications Leader
Vancouver Coastal Health/Research Institute
604.875.4111 ext. 61777
604.319.7533 cell | |
For more information on government services or to subscribe to the Province's news feeds using RSS, visit the Province's website at www.gov.bc.ca.
BACKGROUNDER
2009OTP0052-000453
March 20, 2009 | Office of the Premier
VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation |
ROBERT H.N. HO DONATION
Overview
A donation of $15 million from retired executive Robert H.N. Ho will transform the face of Vancouver General Hospital (VGH) and spark a new wave of health care research and innovations for British Columbians. The gift includes $8.2 million for the construction of the building including equipment, personnel and various outfitting of the Robert H.N. Ho Research Centre, $6 million for the Cardiac Investigation and Intervention Unit in the Jim Pattison Pavilion and $800,000 for VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation's 'in it for life' Fund.
The Robert H.N. Ho Research Centre
The Robert H.N. Ho Research Centre at VGH is scheduled to begin construction in the summer of 2009 and will be completed in 2011. This seven-storey, 69,350 sq. ft. building located on Laurel Street at West 10th Avenue will be home to three internationally recognized research programs - the Vancouver Prostate Centre at VGH, the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility, and the Ovarian Cancer Research Initiative (OvCaRe). The Robert H.N. Ho Research Centre at VGH will be a hub for translational research where new research discoveries are brought from the laboratory bench to the patient's bedside. The proximity of this centre to VGH's clinical care ensures new observations from the patient's bedside about the nature and progression of a disease or injury can be used to stimulate new research initiatives.
The Vancouver Prostate Centre at VGH
Every year, more than 2,500 men are treated at the Vancouver Prostate Centre at VGH, Canada's foremost centre for prostate cancer treatment and research. For more than a decade, the surgeons and researchers at the Prostate Centre at VGH have developed and delivered optimized care to B.C. men, helping B.C. achieve the lowest prostate cancer mortality rate in the country.
The Vancouver Prostate Centre at VGH has played an essential role in the huge gains that have been made to date in the early detection and treatment of prostate cancer. However, many men still die when prostate cancer recurs in a treatment-resistant form and spreads to other parts of the body.
This resistance to treatment is the underlying reason for most cancer deaths, and is the focus of the innovative cancer research taking place here today.
Centre for Hip Health and Mobility
The Centre for Hip Health and Mobility is the first centre in the world focused on improving bone and joint health for people of all ages. The centre brings together a one-of-a-kind alliance of experts in a wide variety of fields - such as geriatric medicine, sports medicine, physiotherapy, orthopaedic surgery, population health, health economics, sociology, imaging science, kinesiology and biomedical engineering - all focused on addressing hip, knee, joint and musculoskeletal health and mobility issues.
Researchers at the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility work with patients of all ages and study bone and joint health from a number of angles and to find solutions that can quickly be introduced in operating rooms, family doctors' offices, residential care facilities, community centres, homes and schools around B.C. and across Canada. Another goal of the Centre for Hip Health & Mobility is to decrease hip fractures in Canada by 10 per cent, saving the Canadian health care system $100 million annually.
Ovarian Cancer Research Initiative - OvCaRe
Six in ten women with ovarian cancer will die within five years of diagnosis. In 2000, a group of B.C. researchers and physicians came together as a team to find a cure. Led by Dr. Dianne Miller, a VGH gynecologic oncologist who specializes in ovarian cancer, this group formed the Ovarian Cancer Research initiative (OvCaRe).
Today, Canada's OvCaRe program is the leading ovarian cancer research program in Canada. The OvCaRe initiative has set new standards for multidisciplinary ovarian cancer research, leading to national and international collaborations and generating breakthroughs in the diagnosis and classification of ovarian cancer, such as the recent discovery that ovarian cancer is not a single disease, but five distinct diseases.
In recognition of OvCaRe's leadership in pioneering individualized treatment, British Columbia was chosen as a site for a clinical trial of an exciting new therapy for the most aggressive form of ovarian cancer. Work done at VGH has led to the hope that at least 60 per cent of women with this lethal malignancy may benefit from this new treatment.
Cardiac Investigation and Intervention Unit
The Cardiac Investigation and Intervention Unit at the Jim Pattison Pavilion at VGH provides care in B.C. for patients with conditions such as angina, cardiac rhythm problems, heart failure and heart disease. To provide the very best patient care for those with cardiovascular conditions and diseases, the cardiac team requires the latest technology for cardiac investigation and intervention and diagnostic imaging for minimally invasive and other procedures. This allows patients to live longer, heal faster, reduce their stay at the hospital and experience less pain. Mr. Ho's gift will enable the region to enhance its cardiac investigation and intervention unit, funding new equipment such as angiography and electrophysiology suites that will impact patient care for British Columbians and pioneer research to help patients in B.C. and around the world.
Background on Mr. Robert H.N. Ho
Born in Hong Kong in 1932, Robert H.N. Ho is the grandson of Sir Robert Ho Tung and Lady Clara Ho Tung, and the son of General Ho Shai Lai and Hesta Ho Hung Ki Fun. Mr. Ho was educated at Lingnan and Pui Ching Middle Schools in Hong Kong. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree at Colgate University and his Master of Science degree in Journalism at the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University in the United States. Mr. Ho spent his business career in journalism and in managing his family's property and investment business. Since his retirement, he has focused on philanthropy, through personal gifts as well as through his Foundations, the Tung Lin Kok Yuen Canada Foundation and the Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation.
Some of Mr. Ho's most recent charitable contributions include: - 2008: $5 million to Stanford University to establish the Ho Center for Buddhist Studies at Stanford University.
- 2006: $10 million to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London England to establish the first permanent gallery of Buddhist art and sculptures in the United Kingdom.
- 2006: $4 million to University of Toronto to create a network of international Buddhist Studies programs.
- 2006: $4 million to UBC to establish North America's first Buddhism and Contemporary Society program.
- 2005: $500,000 to VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation for the purchase of Canada's first dedicated cardiac CT scanner.
- 2004: $25 million to Colgate University in New York to establish the Robert Hung Ngai Ho Interdisciplinary Science Centre.
- 2000: $15 million to Hong Kong University to finance the Centre of Buddhist Studies.
Media Contact:
Jon Hicke
Director of Marketing & Communications
VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation
604.875.5196 | Lisa Carver
Regional Communications Leader
604.875.4111 x 61777
604.319.7533 (cell) |
| | |
Bernadette Murphy
Media Relations Manager
Ministry of Health Services
250.952.1887
250.213.9590 | |
For more information on government services or to subscribe to the Province's news feeds using RSS, visit the Province's website at www.gov.bc.ca.
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