Local philanthropists Martin and Denise Pick have made another donation to the Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC) Foundation — this time a $1 million donation the regional hospital has invested in minimally invasive surgical tools and state-of-the-art diagnostic technology.
The hospital’s women’s and children’s unit was named after the couple in honour of the donation during a private family event on Tuesday (March 26).
“Martin and Denise believe in the power of philanthropy to make their hospital and hometown great,” said PRHC Foundation president and CEO Lesley Heighway in a media release. “They have a long history of making transformational gifts and their generosity has been shaping the future of health care in this region for years. We’re beyond grateful for their continued support.”
The couple have long-standing relationships with PRHC both as volunteers, with Martin a former PRHC Foundation board member, and donors. In 2019, PRHC unveiled the Martin and Denise Pick Learning Centre, a 4,300-square-foot centre to support multidisciplinary health care training and education initiatives at the hospital. Most of the $3.1 million cost of the centre was donated by the Picks.
Both that donation and the $1 million donation announced on Tuesday were made through the Remembering Otto and Marie Pick Charitable Foundation, a family charitable fund named for Martin’s father and mother. Martin’s father died from his third heart attack in 1959 at the age of 54.
“Denise and I feel that the quality of health care available in a community is tied to its overall quality of life — to its ability to grow and prosper,” Martin said. “We want to help make sure the doctors and nurses at PRHC have the tools they need to deliver the best care. To do that, we need to support them and give them the equipment that will allow them to innovate.”
“The more we can do to support PRHC, the more we can help improve health care for patients from Peterborough and our surrounding communities,” Denise added. “We hope our donation encourages others to join us.”
The Picks’ $1 million donation has allowed PRHC to upgrade one of four general operating suites with state-of-the-art minimally invasive surgical tools, Heighway said. As technology and equipment is not covered by government funding, hospitals rely on the generosity of community donors to acquire it — something that also helps PRHC attract top health care professionals to work at the hospital.
According to PRHC general surgeon Dr. Joslin Cheverie, the investment “has given my colleagues and I access to brand new, leading-edge equipment to perform cancer surgeries” and has enabled the hospital to introduce fluorescence-guided imaging to general surgery.
“This new, specialized system is letting us operate with increased precision,” she said. “It’s an advancement that has tremendous potential for the treatment of bowel and other cancers.”
The $1 million donation has also helped fund two new leading-edge CT (computed tomography) scanners that support safer and more accurate diagnosis by generating higher quality and more comprehensive images.
The donation is also helping PRHC treat more urgent and chronic conditions like cancer, stroke, and traumatic injury without invasive surgery through the expansion and upgrading of the hospital’s interventional radiology suites.
“It’s so encouraging to have the support of people like Martin and Denise Pick, who care as much about our health care future as we do and are willing to invest in us and the technology we need to make our vision a reality,” said PRHC president and CEO Dr. Lynn Mikula.
