Research is rolling in Richmond

A couple of years ago, Mario McKenna found himself in the hospital, sick, with a blood infection.

“I had been a researcher for many years at this point, but this illness – and what it took to get me better – really gelled for me the importance of research to the actual patient,” said McKenna.  “I guess you could say that the dots all connected.”

As research facilitator for both the Richmond Community of Care and Vancouver Community, McKenna works for the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute (VCHRI) to promote research as well as increased the amounts of quality research coming out of the two sites.

Richmond is a growing centre for research

McKenna arrived in Richmond in mid-2015, and was surprised by what he found.

“It was really interesting,” he reflected. “Although Richmond Hospital is smaller than VGH, it has some pretty established researchers and a research community that’s getting bigger, more established, and producing some cutting edge research.”

Formalizing the research process in Richmond

Richmond’s Research Advisory Committee meets monthly, every fourth Tuesday. Membership is open to all staff. Not only does the committee oversee the research function, but it is also involved in encouraging Community of Care-based researchers to participate in the annual Research Challenge.

“You can come to and talk about your research questions or just come to a meeting and listen to senior researchers talk about their projects,” McKenna said.

Small starts and big findings

McKenna credited the care he received from his hospital bed a few years ago for intensifying his drive to promote research and improve health care for the community.

“It reinforced to me the importance of my job, and made me more passionate about what I do,” he said. “I really hope to impress upon the Richmond Community of Care that research doesn’t only mean big pharma trials. In fact, it’s often the small stuff that impacts patient care.”

Do you have a research-related question?

Mario McKenna can be reached anytime — 604.999.4935, or by email at Mario.McKenna@vch.ca

In next week’s VCH News, we’ll meet members of Richmond’s Research Advisory Committee and learn more about the annual Research Challenge.