It’s Time To Push Boundaries And Evolve. Together, We Are Making Vancouver Island A Hub For Surgical Innovation.
Making Our Island A Hub For Surgical Innovation.
Phase I set a new standard for community hospitals. Phase II is another leap forward—making VGH and RJH national teaching centres as we advance robotics, neurosurgery, and cancer care for our community.
SECOND DA VINCI ROBOT (VGH)
Expanding Robotic Surgery Access To More Specialties
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With a second da Vinci robotic surgical system at VGH, we can extend the success of RJH’s groundbreaking program to a whole new community of patients.
The region’s second da Vinci surgical robot at VGH to expand minimally invasive care across gynecology, pediatrics, and general surgery, and increase access at RJH for ENT, thoracic, and urology. Specialized nursing teams at each site will ensure world-class care, positioning Victoria as a national leader in robotics and teaching. In women’s health, we will introduce robotic-assisted surgeries for endometrial and uterine cancers—a transformative step for some of our Island women who previously had to travel off-Island to receive this care or for whom surgery was not an option.
RJH & VGH are the first centres in British Columbia to operate two da Vinci robots, and some of Canada’s first community centres to launch a robotics program across multiple surgical specialties. With your support we can continue to grow as national leaders in robotic surgery.
NEUROSURGICAL ROBOT (VGH)
Revolutionizing Brain & Spine Surgery Precision
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Each year, Islanders face complex neurological conditions that require extraordinary precision. These include spinal fusions, scoliosis corrections, and other delicate procedures where even a single millimetre can mean the difference between walking or not, independence or lifelong disability.
This campaign will fund a Mazor X robotic system at VGH— the first on Vancouver Island and one of very few in Canada. It will operate at VGH and deliver extraordinary precision in brain and spinal surgeries to improve safety and outcomes for patients with complex conditions The neurosurgery robot reduces complications, lowers rates of revision operations, minimizes radiation exposure, shortens hospital stays, and allows patients to receive the best in precision care. This technology is part of a long-term vision for VGH’s nationally renowned neurosurgery department, and will support the attraction of new talent.
ONCOLOGY SUITE (RJH & VGH)
Bringing 60+ Advanced Cancer Care Tools To Our ORs
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Across our province, cancer cases are projected to rise by 40% in the next decade. Through Phase II, we are proud to bring the next generation of oncology equipment to Vancouver Island.
This suite of 60+ precision oncology equipment our surgeons requested will ensure local surgeons have access to the same advanced technology found in Canada’s leading hospitals. This investment is paired with system-wide enhancements—expanded operating room capacity, extended daytime hours, additional evening slates, dedicated robotic rooms, and strategic recruitment in key specialties—ensuring Islanders can access the most advanced care close to home and families alike.
Equipment highlights include: New portable 4K laparoscopic towers for breast and reconstructive surgery; specialized intraoperative ultrasound and probes for liver, pancreas, kidney and prostate cancer; and new advanced sets for lung cancer.
YOUR GIFT IS MATCHED TODAY
YOUR GIFT IS MATCHED TODAY
Drive Phase II Forward: Donate Now
Join us in raising $21 million to support surgical evolution today and double your impact. We are so grateful to launch this campaign with the largest gift in our 36-year history: a $7.5 million match donation from a local philanthropist.
Drive Phase II Forward: Donate Now
Join us in raising $21 million to support surgical evolution and make double the impact.
Witness The Transformation: Phase I In Action
Discover the incredible impact that Phase I: It’s Time for Surgical Innovation has had on our hospitals and community.
YOUR SUPPORT IS NEEDED. THE TIME IS NOW.
Our hospitals are home to top surgeons and leading-edge procedures. Across all surgical specialties, our surgeons are constantly striving to optimize the care they provide for their patients.
Our hospitals are home to top surgeons and leading-edge procedures. Across all surgical specialties, our surgeons are constantly striving to optimize the care they provide for their patients.
Neurosurgery
With a neurosurgical robot, VGH is poised to become a national leader in neurosurgery. We will be one of only a few centres in Canada with this advanced technology. Robotic neurosurgery offers 99.6% accuracy for brain & spine procedures, where one millimetre can mean the difference between independence and life-long disability, resulting in six times fewer complications than current methods.
General Surgery
Our hospitals are some of the highest volume centres in the province for the treatment of breast, colorectal, gastric, liver, gallbladder, and pancreatic cancers. Thanks to the drive of our general surgeons, we were one of the first centres in western Canada to offer minimally invasive colorectal surgery. Now with the introduction of surgical robotics, we have become national leaders in this field, training colorectal surgeons from across Canada.
Women’s Health
Women’s health was the first to specialize in minimally invasive surgery. At VGH, the gynecology program has grown from five specialists to 17, including many subspecialists, meaning all Island gynecology patients can receive care here at home, rather than having to travel to the Mainland. Surgical robotics will provide much more precise and gentler care for patients facing uterine and endometrial cancers, and offering a surgical option for some women would previously did not have one on the Island.
Otolaryngology (ENT)
Our ENT (ear, nose, throat) surgeons are excited for the introduction of surgical robotics. This technology will enable new-to-the-Island minimally invasive procedures that previously required cutting into the jaw, leaving patients with permanent scarring, and difficulties in eating, speaking and swallowing. This will significantly reduce recovery times, helping to relieve pressure on our hospitals and improve quality of life for ENT patients. Robotic surgery will also allow our ENT surgeons to remove tumours from otherwise inaccessible anatomical spaces with minimal scarring.
Urology
Our urologists have been at the forefront of advocating for surgical robotics. Already, hundreds of urology patients have undergone robotic-assisted surgery and the results have been staggering. Patients who previously would have needed to stay in hospital for 3-5 days are able to be discharged in under 24 hours with reduced complications and pain. There has yet to be a single robotic urology patient that has needed re-admittance in our Victoria hospitals. Robotic surgery is providing incredible benefits for our patients’ care, our surgeons’ peace of mind, and our hospitals’ capacity.
Pediatrics
Minimally invasive care is especially important for our smallest patients. At VGH, the Island’s referral centre for pediatrics, surgical robotics and advanced oncology equipment will allow our surgeons to operate accurately in tight anatomical areas for children and teens facing difficult health challenges so they can get back to being kids as quickly as possible.
DISCOVER LOCAL SURGICAL STORIES
DISCOVER LOCAL SURGICAL STORIES
I’m Ready to Support Surgical Evolution
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