SHOWCASE OF IMPACT

On December 7th, 2022, more than 70 donors were hosted at the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation Equipment Showcase. For the first time since the onset of the pandemic, we were able to welcome our donors to an event with an opportunity to see the impact of their support. Frontline staff were on hand to showcase six examples of donor-funded equipment, and to share the impact it made in their ability to provide the very best patient care in BC, as well as the impacts on patient outcomes.

STAND-ALONE INDIRECT CALORIMETRY METABOLIC CART

This device, used in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), allows our healthcare teams to accurately determine and match the amount of energy a ventilated critical care patient needs. This is particularly useful for optimizing nutritional tube feedings. The positive impacts this affords our patients can include reduced ICU length of stays, improved nutritional care delivery that is specific to the patient’s needs, improved maintenance of skeletal muscle quality, and a reduced risk of mortality within 90 days of admission.

Intravascular Ultrasound

The Intervascular Ultrasound offers advanced imaging and visualization inside of a blood vessel. Used in surgery, this device helps determine the best path for venous stenting in a patient, based on their specific condition. It can also identify any plaque buildup through viewing the aorta and artery walls.

This device is especially useful for patients with complex vessels. It provides a high degree of accuracy, with no radiation exposure as no x-rays are involved. The results are available in real-time, meaning if a patient requires additional procedures or interventions, precious time is saved.

TRANS-ESOPHAGEAL ULTRASOUND PROBE (TEE)

This technology allows frontline caregivers to create an ultrasound movie of a beating heart. An essential piece of equipment for cardiac surgeons, it allows them to view that movie before and during the operation to diagnose and determine a course of treatment. This can mean the difference between determining whether the patient’s own heart valve can be repaired, or whether it needs to be replaced with an artificial one. This minimally invasive diagnostic technique provides real-time imaging and a recording capability, that can significantly improve outcomes for our cardiac patients.

PERINATAL NEWBORN WARMER (PANDA)

The Panda is used in labour and delivery and in the Variety Neonatal

Intensive Care Unit (NICU). It is used for assessment and improves the workflow for healthcare workers in an infant’s most critical first moments of life, especially if resuscitation is required. It does all this while also providing the best in thermoregulation and thermal performance. Royal Columbian has some of the best outcomes in the country for our tiniest critical patients.

The Panda is used multiple times a day following every delivery whether it is vaginal or by caesarian section. It is less invasive, avoiding multiple moves and possible complications for the newborn, and can reduce the length of stay in the NICU. It improves neonatal outcomes, providing relief for countless anxious parents and families.

Iviz Ultrasound Device

Used in our Pediatric Department, the iViz enables an internal visualization of tiny patient veins. It is used to start IVs on our smallest patients, and significantly improves success rates and decreases multiple attempts. It helps support our caregivers in quickly and successfully starting critical IVs in children. It is fast, non-invasive, and is less traumatic for the pediatric patient, and by extension, their families. ■