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RCH receives $2.65M donation to help moms and babies

The Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation is helping transform Royal Columbian Hospital with a major gift made in support of maternal, infant, child and youth care. The $2.
Chris Campbell
RCH NICU
Baby Kamila gets a feeding of breast milk at the Royal Columbian neonatal intensive care unit.Cornelia Naylor

The Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation is helping transform Royal Columbian Hospital with a major gift made in support of maternal, infant, child and youth care.

The $2.65-million donation to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s redevelopment campaign will assist phase 2 of the hospital’s $1.49-billion redevelopment, which includes new and expanded space for its maternity, neonatal intensive care, and pediatrics units.

The donation is designed to honour employees of the Washington companies and their families, and in particular Southern Railway of British Columbia, which is celebrating the 25th anniversary of becoming a Washington company.

“Washington companies employees live in many of the communities served by Royal Columbian Hospital,” says Washington family representative Kyle Washington. “Our goal with this gift is to support the well-being of these communities and leave a lasting impact for generations.”

Southern Railway of British Columbia, a Washington Company since 1994, has established a special partnership with the RCH foundation for several years already. The New Westminster-based freight transporter donates regularly to the hospital based on the safety record that employees achieve each quarter, thereby promoting a strong safety culture and giving back to the community at the same time.

RCH donation
Kyle Washington is pictured fifth from the left, middle row. Mike Halligan, executive director of the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation, is pictured sixth from the left, middle row. The others pictured are representatives of RCH, RCH Foundation, Fraser Health, Southern Railway of BC, Seaspan, or Washington Companies, along with Mayor Jonathan Cote. Photo contributed/Jerald Walliser

“Since the program started in 2012, we have proudly contributed close to $400,000 to the hospital,” said Southern Railway of British Columbia president Derek Ollmann. “The credit goes to our employees for maintaining an excellent safety record.”

Royal Columbian Hospital’s new multi-storey Acute Care Tower, due to be completed in 2024, will house a new 48-bed maternity department, helping to care for 3,000 births each year. Most of the department’s rooms will be single-patient rooms to allow families the opportunity to bond in a private and dignified setting.

The NICU’s 24 beds will also be converted to single-patient rooms, allowing hundreds of parents each year to enjoy valuable bonding time with their newborns in a private setting.

In addition to providing support to women with high-risk pregnancies and newborns requiring critical care, RCH is a regional pediatric care centre. In the redevelopment, the pediatric department will grow by four additional beds for a total of 16.