The Impact Of Surgical Innovation
It’s Time For Surgical Innovation Campaign Reaches $17 Million Goal
Drs. Mona Mazgani and Sepehr Khorasani place a completion decal on the campaign progress sign at Victoria General Hospital
From the desk of Avery Brohman, CEO October 9th, 2025 — As Thanksgiving approaches, I find myself reflecting on the remarkable journey we have shared this past year. I am filled with gratitude for your generosity, vision, and commitment that have made our hospitals stronger, our care more precise, and our community more united.
Last October we embarked on a profound journey with Phase I of It’s Time for Surgical Innovation, and today I am honoured to share that we have officially raised $17 million to complete the first stage of our It’s Time campaign. More than 3,400 donors powered this phase like never before—and yet it is no surprise to witness this community rise to the occasion, uniting to redefine surgical care on Vancouver Island. Here in Victoria, we can now proudly say that we are setting the standard for surgical innovation in community hospitals that others look to and aspire toward—we are leaders in this space. I am so proud, and so thankful. Thank you.
It feels profound to know our hospitals are now home to the Island’s first surgical robotics program—the second of its kind in BC, as well as 50 advanced surgical tools our surgeons requested, ensuring we had the equipment found within the strongest hospitals across Canada. Together, we are offering the most minimally invasive surgeries, helping patients recover faster, reducing complications, and energizing our hospital teams to deliver care at a level we could only have imagined a few years ago. We are also expediting waitlists for women diagnosed with gynecological cancers, ensuring they receive surgeries sooner and using new minimally invasive equipment. The tools you have funded are changing the game for local surgery, and it feels so rewarding to place innovative technology in the hands of our care teams for better patient outcomes. Philanthropy made that possible, and that is something I’ll never take for granted.
As I reflect on the past year, I think of the leaders whose courage gave us the confidence to pursue a project of this scale, and of those whose dedication never wavered along the way. To each of you who created matching opportunities to inspire others, stood by us through postal strikes and a difficult economy, surpassed expectations at our galas, gave extraordinary gifts in recognition of care received, and uplifted us all through your generosity—thank you. You make me so proud to be part of a giving community like this one.
I also think of the incredible people who deliver the care. Our Chief Urologist, Dr. Jeff McCracken, now the newly appointed Chief of Robotics—a program made possible purely through philanthropy—tells me every chance he gets how robotics is ushering in a new era, including lightening the mental load for physicians who no longer need to oversee prolonged hospital stays. Gynecologic Oncologist Dr. Mona Mazgani and her team now have double the equipment for women’s cancer care, giving patients the support they deserve in a field that has long been underserved—and one we remain deeply committed to advancing. General Surgeon Dr. Sepehr Khorasani has already performed the highest volume of colorectal robotic surgeries in the province. He is so inspired by the results that he is now training peers across the country to follow our lead. Our nurses, eager to be in the operating room, are witnessing this transformation firsthand, energized by the difference your generosity makes every day but also grateful their patients are going home quicker and healthier.
