Research is where the future of care takes shape
Research is where the future of care takes shape. At Royal Columbian Hospital (RCH), it begins with the people closest to patients: caregivers who see possibilities, ask important questions, and pursue better ways to diagnose, treat, and support those in their care.
The opening of the Jim Pattison Acute Care Tower on May 31, 2026, has created an extraordinary new environment for care, with expanded critical care capacity, a larger Emergency Department, modern inpatient units, and new opportunities for innovation, education, and research.
Donor support helps make this work possible. Through fellowships, professorships, clinical studies, and caregiver-led innovation, philanthropy provides the resources needed to ask important questions, pursue promising discoveries, and bring new knowledge to the bedside. By investing in research, donors are investing in the people behind every breakthrough, helping caregivers develop new solutions and shape the future of healthcare for British Columbians.
Why we need you
The Jim Pattison Acute Care Tower represents a historic investment in healthcare. Now, we have an equally important opportunity: to empower the people working within these new spaces to make the most of what is possible.
Our caregivers know where care can be improved because they experience its challenges firsthand. They recognize when a process could be safer, a technology could be used more effectively, or a different approach could help a patient recover sooner. Research gives them a structured way to explore those possibilities, test ideas, build evidence, and apply what they learn.
However, research requires resources beyond the delivery of day-to-day care. Caregivers need protected time to develop and lead studies. Emerging researchers need mentorship and training. Teams need specialized equipment, research coordinators, data support, and opportunities to collaborate with academic and industry partners.
Demand for care is also continuing to rise. The population served by RCH is expected to reach 2.4 million by 2030, while increasing age and medical complexity will place further pressure on hospital services. More patients will require highly specialized care for serious conditions, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, traumatic injuries, and neurological disorders.
Responding to this demand will require more than additional space. It will require new knowledge, new approaches, and caregivers who have the support to lead change.
Government funding plays a critical role in operating our healthcare system and supporting the hospital’s redevelopment. Philanthropy can provide the added momentum that helps caregivers explore promising ideas, evaluate emerging technologies, and introduce innovations that could otherwise take longer to reach patients.
Your support helps give caregivers the capacity to look beyond today’s immediate demands and pursue what could improve care tomorrow.
Why philanthropy matters
When you support research at Royal Columbian Hospital, you invest in the people behind every advancement.
You help caregivers ask important questions and pursue answers. You support clinicians who want to improve the experience of patients and families.
You help emerging specialists develop research skills, enable established leaders to advance complex studies, and provide multidisciplinary teams with the resources to turn their ideas into action.
This is not research separated from patient care. It is research shaped by the realities of the bedside and focused on practical improvements for patients and the teams who support them.
Each year, Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation raises funds for research. This funding will help RCH remain a destination for exceptional clinical talent, a centre for discovery, and a leader in advancing care for British Columbians.
Research at Royal Columbian
Donor support can help provide
Fellowships and advanced training
Fellowships and advanced training, helping emerging specialists develop knowledge and research experience.
Professorships and research leadership positions
Professorships and research leadership positions, giving experienced clinicians the capacity to lead complex studies and mentor others.
Research coordinators
Research coordinators, data support, and specialized equipment, providing the infrastructure needed to move a project forward.
Pilot funding
Pilot funding, enabling caregivers to test promising ideas and build the evidence required for larger studies.
Technology evaluation
Technology evaluation, helping teams understand how new tools can be introduced safely and effectively.
Academic and industry partnerships
Academic and industry partnerships, connecting RCH caregivers with expertise and collaborators locally, nationally, and internationally.
By caring for our caregivers
By caring for our caregivers, donors help create the conditions in which discovery can happen—and in which discovery can become better care.