Largest fundraiser in KGH history kicked off

The largest fundraising campaign in the history of the Kelowna General Hospital (KGH) Foundation has been launched.

The goal is $40 million to advance health care at the hospital, and in the community, in the project called “Closer to home than you think.”

“Today, we stand with patients, families and our partners in health care to launch what will be the future of care in our community,” Allison Young, CEO of the KGH Foundation, said. “We all want the same thing. What matters most to all of us is the health care that is being delivered right here, where we live.”

“When you’re healthy, you might not think much about health care,” said Dawn Wrightson, a retired nurse and health care administrator who spoke on behalf of patients and families. “But when facing a life-threatening diagnosis, a critical injury, or when it’s someone you love, I can assure you, it’s all you think about.”

The campaign is significantly different from the Foundation’s recent fundraising efforts. Rather than focus solely on the acquisition of equipment or expansion of services in one single area of care, the $40 million includes a novel commitment to innovation funding, and is allocated across eight areas of priority.

“As part of our commitment to advancing clinical and surgical excellence, we will be raising the funds needed to acquire a 3T MRI machine, one of the gold standards in medical imaging, for KGH,” Young explained. “The addition of the 3T MRI will not only impact waitlists but will improve patient care on many levels thanks to its capacity to deliver faster scans, clearer images and more accurate diagnosis.”

For more information on the campaign and fundraising goals, visit kghfoundation.com