It’s no secret that music can be a powerful emotional connector for people. From lullabies for babies, to dance songs on the radio, music moves people in ways that few other art forms can. For people in psychological distress, music can be a soothing and comforting form of therapy. That’s why Richmond Hospital’s Psychiatric Inpatient Unit makes music therapy available to its patients. Angie Ji, an accredited music therapist at Richmond Hospital, says the unique advantage of music therapy is that it is intrinsically beautiful. 

The development process behind a new app to help sedentary people get moving shows how unique partnerships between researchers, consumers, and patient groups can lead to innovative health research. Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute (VCHRI) scientists Dr. Linda Li and Dr.

Like millions of people around the world, Dr. E. Paul Zehr is a big fan of Batman. In fact, Dr. Zehr, who works in human discovery science at ICORD (International Collaboration On Repair Discoveries), uses Batman as a way to teach people about science and medicine. He’s also written a book about the caped crusader—Becoming Batman: The Possiblity of a Superhero. 

“Batman is the only superhero who is a human being. So people really relate to him,” says Dr. Zehr. “Batman’s popularity is a great tool to spotlight real world issues.” 

Around Christmastime in the year 2000, three clinician researchers got together in Vancouver General Hospital (VGH)’s cafeteria to discuss a common frustration: too many women were dying from ovarian cancer. Despite global research efforts, back then the five-year survival rate for women with the disease was less than 50 per cent. Fuelled by a desire to improve those outcomes, the three doctors sketched an outline—on the back of a napkin—for a concentrated, multi-disciplinary ovarian cancer research effort.