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January 29, 2015

Back row: L-R Noordin Nanji, Board Vice Chair, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation; Barbara Grantham, President & CEO, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation; Carole Taylor, Corporate Director, BCE; Kip Woodward, Board Chair, Vancouver Coastal Health ; Jane Thornthwaite, North Vancouver-Seymour MLA and Parliamentary Secretary for Student Support and Parent Engagement; Dr Soma Ganesan, Medical Director of Psychiatry, VGH; Mary Deacon, Chair, Bell Let’s Talk; Erin Emiru, mental health advocate Front row: Joseph Segal, Rosalie Segal, philanthropists .

$1-million donation from Bell Let’s Talk supports new mental health centre at VGH

On Monday, January 26, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation and Bell announced a gift of $1 million from Bell Let’s Talk to support the new Joseph & Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre. When it opens in spring 2017, the Centre will be the largest purpose-built mental health facility in British Columbia and one of the largest in Canada.

“The Bell Let’s Talk commitment to mental health in Canada is nothing short of inspiring,” said Barbara Grantham, Foundation president and CEO. “This $1-million gift will enable us to transform the way we treat patients suffering from mental illness and/or addiction, and for that, we are very grateful.”

With Bell’s donation, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation has reached its fundraising goal for construction of this innovative mental health centre. The new state-of-the-art mental health building will consolidate mental health inpatient and outpatient programs into one facility, increasing capacity and access to care for people living with mental illness.

“We’re grateful to have the opportunity to put the finishing touch to VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation’s fundraising campaign for the Joseph & Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre. The campaign’s great success proves the commitment of British Columbians to good mental health and improved access to care,” said Mary Deacon, Chair of Bell Let’s Talk. “Bell Let’s Talk is proud to support the Joseph & Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre alongside other leading hospitals and other institutions across Canada that are expanding care options and driving new research in mental health care.”

With 100 private rooms, the Joseph & Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre’s mental health program will be the largest hospital-based program for people with serious mental health issues in the province and will have the largest inpatient and outpatient population of any other hospital in the region. It is anticipated that the centre will treat up to 1,900 people in the inpatient program and as many as 30,000 people in the outpatient program annually.

Construction has already begun on the $8-million LEED Gold building which opens in 2017. In addition to support from Bell, the Government of British Columbia and many VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation corporate and private donors have supported the campaign, including Vancouver philanthropists Joseph and Rosalie Segal with a lead gift of $12 million – one of the largest personal gifts ever given to support mental health care in Canada.

For more information contact: Tiffany Kraus, Director, Marketing and Communications, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation

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  1. Linda Harris

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    This $1 million donation from Bell Let’s Talk to support the new Joseph & Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre is much needed and will be utilized in a way that changes hopelessness for many to a chance to live a full balanced life. This is deeply important work that effects people in all walks of life, not just those individuals that are homeless and helpless living on the streets of our province. These people in need are your neighbours,your family and your friends. During periods in your life it may be you. Keep this dialogue open and fundraising moving forward. In gratitude, Linda Harris.

    February 1, 2015