After two life-changing surgeries that restored his health, George Pick, Director of the Remembering Otto and Marie Pick Family Foundation, felt inspired by the kindness and superb care at St. Paul’s Hospital that made his recovery possible.
In 1998, George was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The condition was well-controlled at first, but soon devolved into a second inflammatory bowel disease – Crohn’s. When medications stopped working, George’s constant abdominal pain led to frequent visits to the Teck Emergency Centre at St. Paul’s Hospital, where he first met Dr. Manoj Raval in 2011.
Dr. Raval recommended surgery to remove George’s large intestine. It was a big step, but one that George trusted completely because of Dr. Raval’s skilled expertise in colorectal surgery, along with his caring manner.
“I found him to be really patient and very understanding,” George recalls. “He was very good at explaining everything. So many surgeons are under a lot of time constraints, but if I had questions, he would wait, stop, and answer.”
George made a full recovery from the surgery, but his health journey at St. Paul’s Hospital wasn’t complete just yet. George was also living with troublesome pain in his sinuses and nasal passages, so he was referred to Dr. Amin Javer at the St. Paul’s Sinus Centre. A minor nasal surgery completely fixed the problem, leaving George with a deeply positive impression about the care delivered at St. Paul’s Hospital.
“I've had some doctors who seem to be burnt out, or they like doing surgery but not the patient consultation,” he says. “It wasn’t like that with Dr. Javer and Dr. Raval. I liked that they were both very serious about their professions, and that they seemed to be genuinely interested in patient care.”
Giving back felt like the next natural step
The Remembering Otto and Marie Pick Foundation honours George’s grandparents and is a family-operated charity.
Otto and Marie immigrated to Canada in 1938 from what was then known as Czechoslovakia to avoid the impending atrocities of World War II. Using their background in agriculture, they began a small seed company. In the late 1950s, Otto died unexpectedly of a heart attack. Marie, George’s father Martin, and George’s uncle took over the business, successfully expanding it across Canada.
The decision to sell the business in 2013 eventually led to the establishment of the Remembering Otto and Marie Pick Foundation in 2018. The Foundation donates to a broad swath of Canadian organizations that address health care, mental health, education, substance use, arts and culture, and houselessness.
But George’s interest in philanthropy began long before 2018. Growing up in Toronto, George recalls his parents frequently donating to their local hospitals and later, observed his mother volunteering countless hours there.
After his life-saving treatment at St. Paul’s Hospital, George and his husband Santi began donating annually to Lights of Hope, supporting a star with his grandparents’ names to show their gratitude.
When George first heard about the state-of-the-art Jim Pattison Medical Campus, he knew he had to help build it. Through their Foundation, George, Santi, and George’s parents, Martin and Denise Pick, have donated $1 million. These generous gifts will support the new campus’ Digestive Health Centre and the Clinical Support and Research Centre (CSRC), a research facility connected via skybridge to the new St. Paul’s Hospital.
“This is a brand-new way of delivering care. That really impressed me,” he says.
About the Digestive Health Centre on the Jim Pattison Medical Campus
George’s experience receiving care from the IBD Centre at St. Paul’s Hospital brought digestive health issues close to his heart.
More than 300,000 Canadians are affected by diseases related to digestive health disorders like IBD, and every year, some 24,300 Canadians are diagnosed with colorectal cancer. These disorders are on the rise, especially in children, which is why George wanted to contribute to a place that would help others get the very best care.
The Digestive Health Centre (DHC) on the Jim Pattison Medical Campus will harness the expertise and enthusiasm of BC’s most accomplished gastroenterologists and colorectal surgeons, bringing care providers under one roof to meet the unique needs of patients.
At the DHC, patients will have access to an array of expertise through its six pillars of care: therapeutic endoscopy, colon cancer screening, colorectal surgery, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) care and management, liver disease, and nutrition.
With all specialists and allied health personnel in a single space, evaluation and therapy that would often require a patient to attend as many as five to 10 visits could be accomplished in as few as one or two.
“We’re going to have collaboration like no other team of digestive health care professionals anywhere in the world,” says Dr. Raval. “All with the patient at the centre.”
About the Clinical Support and Research Centre on the Jim Pattison Medical Campus
Providence Health Care is pushing the boundaries of what medicine can achieve with a purpose-built campus thoughtfully designed to accelerate health care transformation.
The Jim Pattison Medical Campus, home to the new St. Paul’s Hospital and adjacent Clinical Support and Research Centre, will set a new standard in patient care by improving access, privacy, comfort, safety, and healing for every patient.
The CSRC is poised to become a best-in-class medical and life sciences research hub that will accelerate the development of new drugs, treatments, and therapies, and forge ahead into new frontiers of medical science that will have a global impact.
The decision to invest in the CSRC was inspired by its promise for global renown coupled with the Pick family’s desire to make a difference.
“It’s going to attract worldwide attention, and the best physicians. I’m hoping the hospital and CSRC will be an example for other facilities to analyze, and they’ll take those lessons away to copy,” George says.
The time to make a difference is now
The Pick family is excited about the compassionate and skilled care that the CSRC and Digestive Health Centre will bring to British Columbia; care that wouldn’t be possible without all of the generous contributions of St. Paul’s Foundation donors.
George encourages others to give what they can, regardless of amount.
“A lot of people think well, I can’t afford much. But it adds up and becomes significant,” he points out. “It doesn't really matter what the donation amount is. What matters is your intention and what it means to you.”
St. Paul’s Foundation extends deep gratitude to the Remembering Otto and Marie Pick Foundation for their generous donation and commitment to a future where care wraps around every patient.