Saved from the brink:
Rescue in the ICU
The Nurse Educator
Health Check: Before and After a Stroke Strikes
The next generation of care
World-leading health care starts with the people. It’s within the brilliant minds and caring hearts of our health care superstars at VGH and UBC Hospital that the best patient care is found.
Donor funding through Chairs and Fellowships has played a vital role in attracting and retaining such stars of health care. By funding their research, donors directly impact care at our hospitals.
By investing in people, supporting their research, and offering them an opportunity to explore and share their knowledge, the care offered to patients throughout BC continuously transforms.
This is where the next generation of care is born. And philanthropy is absolutely vital in order for this to happen.
Decades of philanthropic support for our research centres, such as the Vancouver Prostate Centre, have fueled their development into global leaders in their field. Clinician-scientists have leveraged donor dollars many times over in competitive research grants to have some of the best patient outcomes in the world for men living with prostate cancer.
VGH’s Blusson Spinal Cord Injury Centre and the Vancouver Stroke Program—two other leading programs at VGH and UBC Hospital—bring together translational medical research and patient care thanks to generous donations.
This is why I am proud of the role our Foundation plays with donors to transform health care. This includes community leaders, individual donors and philanthropists, such as Foundation Board Member Ali Pejman who raised an incredible $2.7 million for epilepsy fellowships in BC. And Arran and Ratana Stephens, who donated $1 million and established the Stephens Family Fellowship in Gastroenterology.
This is the difference that people make. Investments from yesterday are felt by patients today, and the same will be true for tomorrow.
While making final preparations for this issue, I received the sad news that the Foundation’s founding Chairman, Peter Bentley passed away. More than forty years ago —at the request of the Premier of the time—Peter established the VGH Foundation. Over four decades, his wisdom and encouragement guided management and the Board to create an engine of health care transformation through philanthropy. His life and contributions are an extraordinary example of the impact one person can have on our community and for generations to come.
We stand on the shoulders of giants. And with that I am proud to share with you this issue of Vital as we explore the stories of these incredible minds today, and the impact it will have on care tomorrow.
Warmest Regards,
Angela Chapman
President & CEO, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation
Remembering
Peter Bentley,
OC, OBC
Remembering Peter Bentley, OC, OBC, our Founding Chairman, visionary philanthropist and dedicated family man
It is with deep sadness that we acknowledge the passing of an extraordinary community leader, philanthropist, our Foundation’s founding Chairman and close friend Peter Bentley (1930-2021). Peter was recognized across BC and Canada as a business and community leader, with the Order of British Columbia and the Order of Canada among the accolades recognizing the impact of his exemplary leadership.
Born in Vienna (Austria) in 1930, Peter was the son of Leopold Bloch-Bauer and Antoinette Ruth Pick. The family fled Vienna in 1938 and settled in British Columbia. His father, who changed his name to Leopold “Poldi” Bentley, founded a furniture and paneling veneer company called Pacific Veneer with his brother-in-law John Prentice, that became Canadian Forest Products Ltd and then Canfor Corporation.
Peter, who attended family business meetings from a young age, began his forestry career in earnest aged 14 when he worked in a logging camp over the summer – earning $25c an hour. Peter, who didn’t take anything for granted, worked hard and learned the business from the ground up from his father and uncle, and staff from all parts of the business. Rising through the ranks, Peter became Executive Vice President of Canfor in 1970, and was Chairman and CEO from 1975-1995. Under his leadership, Canfor became one of Canada’s foremost producers of forestry products and one of BC’s largest homegrown enterprises. Peter also enjoyed other businesses, including his directorships and being a key participant in car importing businesses and most recently SierraSil Health Inc.
Giving back to society was an important part of Peter’s life. He devoted enormous energy and time to a myriad of corporate and non-profit boards, bolstering both the social and economic fabric of our community. Peter’s integrity, hardworking nature and dedication to his family and the community have made an enduring impact on our province and beyond. He was instrumental in the formation of our Foundation, which over its 41-year history has raised over $1 billion–transforming health care for all British Columbians, from hospital to home
“Peter was a great man and extraordinary community leader. As the Founding Chairman of the Board of Directors of VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation, he provided sage advice and guidance to the Board and Foundation leadership for over 40 years,” says Gary Segal, current Chairman of the Board of Directors. “I feel proud and immensely grateful to Peter for his pioneering leadership in creating our Foundation and for his lifelong dedication to transforming health care delivery for current and future generations.”
Other organizations that have benefited from Peter’s leadership and generosity are a testimony to the breadth of his commitment to improving the lives of others. They include BC Sports Hall of Fame, the Vancouver Police Foundation, St. George’s School, York House School, the University of British Columbia, the Business Council of Canada and the University of Northern British Columbia.
In 2019, a greenspace on the Vancouver General Hospital (VGH) campus was named the Peter Bentley & Family Square to honour and recognize the spirit of generosity and leadership that Peter and his wife , Sheila, have embodied and engendered in their children: Barbie, Susie, Joanie, Michael and Lisa.
“Peter and the Bentley family’s philanthropy has been instrumental to programs big and small in our hospitals, ranging from cancer care and research to cardiology through to our Future of Surgery Campaign,” says Angela Chapman, President & CEO of VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation. “Though Peter will be dearly missed by his family and all of us who were fortunate to call him our friend, his philanthropic and community legacies will live on. We shall remember Peter for his dedication and unwavering support of our Foundation, which has fuelled innovation and improvements in health care that benefit all British Columbians.”
Family ‘matriarch’ saved from life-threatening aneurysm
Nature’s Path co-founders donate $1 million to support clinical care and research at VGH
Ratana and Arran Stephens’ $1M donation establishes the Stephens Family Fellowship in Gastroenterology
The founders and co-owners of Nature’s Path — a family-operated company and one of the world leaders in organic food manufacturing and distribution — have recently made a $1 million donation to VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation.
Ratana and Arran Stephens’ generous philanthropic gift establishes the Stephens Family Fellowship in Gastroenterology, a 10-year program that will support future Canadian leaders in clinical care and research.
The cause is particularly important to both Arran and Ratana, as more than a decade ago, Arran was diagnosed with terminal liver failure and was in urgent need of a life-saving liver transplant. Their daughter, Gurdeep, donated half of her liver in 2011, allowing her father to live and continue his work.
“My family and I are so grateful to the doctors and nurses at VGH for our life-saving surgeries,” says the Stephens family. “In gratitude, we made our first million-dollar donation to the liver transplant department of VGH to enable the purchase of much needed diagnostic equipment. And now, our latest donation is just a continuation of our deep appreciation.”
This gift will allow trainees, known as fellows, to work alongside and learn from leading specialists at VGH, participate in clinical care opportunities and take part in translational research projects to benefit patients.
“Support of the Division of Gastroenterology at VGH will have a tremendous impact on the care of countless future patients,” said Dr. Eric Yoshida in VGH’s Division of Gastroenterology. “The Stephens family have been incredibly generous in their commitment to transform medical care and research in B.C. We are extremely grateful to them.”
In particular, fellows will be part of VGH’s interventional endoscopy service which encompasses procedures like colonoscopy and gastroscopy. The program will also lay the groundwork for the teams at VGH to attract and retain the next generation of specialists.
“This fellowship is directly supporting interventional endoscopy, especially work on pancreatic disease,” says Dr. Michael Byrne, Director of the Interventional Endoscopy Program at VGH. “We are delighted to have this amazing and generous support from the Stephens family, which allows us to provide an even better interventional endoscopic service to our patients with pancreatic disease and allied conditions.”
These future medical professionals will ultimately receive a comprehensive learning experience within the VGH environment, which means better care for patients now and into the future.
Nature’s Path, which is perhaps best well-known for their organic breakfast cereals, is run out of Richmond, B.C., and has the family’s own values of altruism and ethical business practices at its heart.
Supporting medical research and other philanthropic endeavours are a major part of how Arran and Ratana conduct both their personal lives and run their business.
Ratana, who is originally from India, says she was raised by her values-driven grandmother to have compassion and always lend a helping hand to the less fortunate.
Arran, who grew up on his family’s berry farm on Vancouver Island, notes a similar ethics-driven up-bringing. He says his parents taught him to always leave the earth better than you found it and not to judge others because of outer differences.
Previously, the family had donated to empower the Gastroenterology Department to purchase a Fibroscan system, which allowed the hospital’s medical experts to scan patients painlessly without the need for a biopsy.
The seeds of Nature’s Path started with a small family restaurant, funded by $7 from Arran’s own pocket and a $1,500 loan. The company has now grown to employ 650 people, and their organic products are sold across 50 countries — an impressive growth that is founded on these principles of ethics and benevolence.
In addition to their generous donations to VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation, the Stephens family has worked with numerous charities, non-governmental institutions and organizations in B.C. and, between personal donations and charitable contributions from Nature’s Path, have contributed $40 million to worthy causes.
The couple were recently the recipients of the 2021 Order of British Columbia — a recognition awarded to civilians who have served with distinction and excellence in the province — for their continued dedication to altruism and sustainability in the province. This year’s recipients also include Chief Joe Alphonse of Tsilhqot’in Nation and Dr. Bonnie J. Henry of Victoria.
Donor-funded canine scent detection team now detecting COVID-19
Thanks to philanthropic support, Vancouver Coastal Health’s (VCH) canine scent detection team – Canines for Care – has been sniffing out Clostridioides difficile (C. difficile) in health care settings both in British Columbia and across the country, reducing infection rates and improving patient quality of care since 2016. Now the team has added COVID-19 to their scent detection roster.
“We wanted to tackle COVID-19 infection prevention from every possible angle,” said Allison Muniak, Executive Director of Quality and Patient Safety, Infection Prevention and Control and Risk Management at VCH. “We are uniquely positioned to do this work with a successful C. difficile detection program led by a multi-disciplinary team of medical professionals, dog handlers and infection prevention practitioners. It was a natural evolution to build on our strengths and find a comprehensive, non-invasive approach to detecting the virus and supporting healthy communities as we work to put the pandemic behind us.”
Since its inception in 2016, donor funding from Peterson and the Rix Family Foundation has enabled the program to expand, allowing VCH to bring the scent detection team in-house and formalizing the program under Infection Prevention & Control.
Health Canada is providing funding to VCH as part of the Safe Restart Agreement Contribution Program, which seeks to assist in the safe restart of Canada’s economy and make the country more resilient to possible future surges of COVID-19. VCH’s ongoing research project aims to explore the signature scent of COVID-19, and develop a dog training program to provide ongoing public health support. Possible applications of COVID-19 canine scent detection includes screening in airports, on cruise ships and at public events.
Canine scent detection team with BC Minister of Health Adrian Dix
“The ability of the health care workers, researchers, dog handlers, and three talented dogs at Vancouver Coastal Health to develop a new virus scent detection program from scratch is an enormous accomplishment,” said Adrian Dix, Minister of Health. “This is one of the countless examples of the way people in our health care system have stepped up to support all of us in a time of great need, keeping us safer and more protected from COVID-19.”
Even with an experienced team, training dogs to detect a relatively new virus is no small feat. The Canines for Care team started from scratch six months ago. Initially, they identified “green” dogs for training and welcomed two Labrador retrievers, Micro and Yoki, and one English springer spaniel, Finn, to the pack.
“Every dog can sniff but not every dog can work,” said Teresa Zurberg, Canine Scent Detection Specialist and nationally-recognized canine handler. “We worked with scent detection teams around the world to find dogs that have the right combination of genetics and also the potential to do this work.”
They then developed a methodology to access appropriate COVID-19 samples and conduct training in a way that’s safe for the dogs and their handlers.
“Working closely with the clinical teams, we have been able to collect COVID-19 saliva, breath and sweat samples from consenting patients across the diverse demographics found in our health region,” said Dr. Marthe Charles, Head of Division of Medical Microbiology and Infection Prevention and Control at VCH. “Access to this array of samples has allowed for robust scent detection training. The scent samples are prepared in a way that removes the risk of transmission of active virus, protecting our team.”
Earlier this month, Micro and Finn were validated for COVID-19 scent detection by a third-party reviewer and were found to have 100 per cent sensitivity and 93 per cent specificity in identifying COVID-19 in a laboratory setting. Yoki, the third dog to go through COVID-19 scent detection training, recently passed the rigorous validation process with similar results.
“The fact that we’re seeing such strong results speaks to the rigor of our training program. These findings are superior to certain antigen tests available on the market,” added Dr. Charles. “We’re very pleased with the results so far and are excited to continue this work.”
With more than 300 million olfactory receptors, dogs are known to be able to detect unseen threats to human health, including bacterial and viral infections and cancer, and that their accuracy can be comparable to certain laboratory diagnostic tests.
VCH was the first health care organization in the world to operationalize its C. difficile detecting canine program that helps detect and reduce cases of C. difficile in the health care environment. Since 2016, the canine scent detection teams at VCH have searched hundreds of hospital areas for C. difficile. They’ve also visited 32 Canadian health care facilities to share their infection prevention expertise.
Son’s memory inspires Surrey family to donate to BC-led epilepsy care
Tragically Joseph Chung passed away aged at just 32-years-old after undergoing complications following a seizure while swimming—one of his favourite pastimes. Joseph suffered from multiple disabilities including autism and epilepsy. His parents, Drs. Peter and Stephanie Chung, are honouring the memory of their first-born son by donating to support epilepsy fellows at Vancouver General Hospital (VGH) to provide hope for future patients and their families.
“To have a child who experiences epilepsy, it feels like you have no control,” says Dr. Peter Chung. “No way of making things better for them. Joseph would have multiple grand mal seizures during the night and all we could do is make sure that he didn’t injure himself. You feel helpless.”
While his life was short, Joseph will be fondly remembered for all the joy he brought to the world. Joseph’s family describes him as a gentle, happy person who was able to light up a room. Despite difficult challenges placed before him, Joseph graduated from Semiahmoo Secondary School and he was an avid swimmer, with a dream of participating in the Special Olympics.
“For our family, the most important thing is faith in God and contributing back to society. Through Joseph, I got to be more compassionate to people who are different from who I am and who are less fortunate,” says Dr. Peter Chung.
The Chung’s $250,000 gift to VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation will support the recruitment of epilepsy program fellows at VGH. Fellows are specialists who undergo additional specialty training for up to two years in a particular area. They work side-by-side with a hospital’s leading sub-specialists, taking part in intensive, hands-on training to gain expertise and advanced skills to care for patients and families.
“This generous gift will have a long-lasting impact on epilepsy research and care in B.C.,” says Dr. Yahya Aghakhani, Director, Epilepsy Program, VGH. “By investing in our fellowship program, the Chung family is nurturing the next generation of epilepsy experts. This will ultimately improve both care and treatment for the thousands of patients who are referred each year to the Epilepsy Program at VGH.”
VGH is the provincial centre for the neurosciences. Patients with the most complex conditions from across British Columbia are referred to VGH to be assessed for a vast range of neurological conditions, from stroke to epilepsy to brain tumours.
“With this gift, we really hope to provide the opportunity to develop better treatments so other parents do not have to experience the same helplessness that we did,” says Dr. Peter Chung.
Epilepsy care and research is part of VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation’s Brain Breakthroughs campaign.