A new learning centre at Kelowna General Hospital (KGH) will be a bridge that brings innovation into the healthcare system.
The doors to the Jim Pattison Centre for Health Systems Learning + Innovation were opened during a media event at KGH on Monday, June 9.
“If you think about the innovation world, which outside of the health system, a lot of that innovation has trouble getting into the system for lots of complex reasons,” said Dr. Dee Taylor, the Centre’s founding executive director. “The centre is a bridge.”
In November 2023, the Jim Pattison Foundation donated $5 million to get the centre started.
“This centre was born, not from convenience, but from necessity,” added Raghwa Gopal, board chair for the centre. “Our health systems face unprecedented pressure, rising demand, limited resources, and increasing complexity. The Jim Pattison Centre was created to tackle those challenges head-on.”
Gopal noted the facility is a collaborative hub where clinicians, researchers, educators and policymakers unite, breaking down silos and working together to build solutions.
“It's about new ways of thinking, connecting, and solving problems,” he said.
Interior Health Authority CEO, Susan Brown, noted that the centre’s launch comes as healthcare faces immense challenges.
“We need innovative approaches, perhaps more than ever, globally as we're seeing aging populations, staffing shortages, growing chronic disease rates, and other complexities,” she said. “Within Interior Health, we are firmly committed to encouraging leverage in innovation.”
The centre is the first of its kind with a focus on rural, remote, Indigenous, and community healthcare. It will primarily be a virtual network connecting innovators, clinical teams, researchers, patients, families, students, partners and investors.
