The donation, which will boost B.C.’s health care workforce, is the largest gift ever made to a school of nursing in Canada.
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The University of B.C. has received a $40 million donation from two alumni, a gift the university says is the largest donation ever made to a school of nursing in Canada.
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To honour the donation from local philanthropists Matthew and Natalie MacIsaac, UBC says it will formally name the school the MacIsaac School of Nursing, to be housed in the MacIsaac Health Building, formerly Gateway Health Building.
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The nursing program at UBC admits 150 undergraduate students each year, according to a university news release Thursday. The school said the money will go to nursing education and research, expand simulation-based clinical learning, and support research, including how AI can help students safely master complex tasks such as administering medications.
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B.C. faces an ongoing nursing shortage driven by vacancies, burnout, and retention challenges, according to the B.C. Nurses’ Union. The union says the province will need more than 26,000 nurses by 2031, yet one out of three nurses say they are thinking of leaving the profession within the next two years.
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Dr. Elizabeth Saewyc, director of the MacIsaac School of Nursing, says while the province sets the number of spaces in the nursing program, the donation will help address the shortages in other ways, such as providing more advancedpracticenursingopportunities.
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“It also provides funding for research about the nursing workforce and the health system in ways that can help address some of the challenges of dealing with not enough nurses in our health-care system,” she said.
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“So this kind of philanthropy is complementary to what the government provides, and can help leverage innovation. We can then put that to work enhancing the education and preparing nurses for the health-care workforce.”
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She said while many specialized nurses get hands-on experience after entering the workforce, the funding will help add new programs for in-program hands-on training.
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For example, providing more experience with managing heart conditions, so that nurses can give ECG readings in a clinic instead of sending a patient to the ER.
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“So this is the kind of things that we can offer in addition to entry to practice degrees, providing further expertise for nurses in practice across the province,” she said.
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Matthew and Natalie MacIsaac, parents to four children, said in a statement that health has always been important to their family, and they believe in the power of education and research to improve people’s lives.
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Matthew is a hedge fund manager and Natalie is a naturopathic doctor.
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“We are proud to support the next generation of nurses and the researchers and educators whose work strengthens health care in communities across British Columbia and beyond.”
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