New partnership to fast-track Canadian health technology from innovation to patient care
New partnership to fast-track Canadian health technology from innovation to patient care
AIM Institute and CAN Health Network join forces to help
Canadian solutions reach clinicians and patients faster
NEW WESTMINSTER, British Columbia, March 19, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s AIM Institute (Advancing Innovation in Medicine) has partnered with the CAN Health Network to collaborate in supporting and scaling promising Canadian health technologies – helping patients benefit sooner from made-in-Canada solutions.
This collaboration brings together two Canadian organizations with a shared commitment to strengthening patient care through innovation. By aligning AIM’s clinical expertise and trial infrastructure with the CAN Health Network’s national network of health care operators and procurement pathways, the partnership is designed to help Canadian health-tech companies move faster from idea to validated solution, and ultimately to broader adoption across Canada.
Canadian health-tech companies will benefit from access to user-defined clinical challenges, direct engagement with frontline clinicians, rigorous clinical trial design and execution, and real-world product evaluation. The goal is to ensure that new solutions are not only innovative, but also clinically validated, economically viable, and ready for scale within Canada’s health care system.
As a social enterprise of Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation, AIM Institute partners with health-tech innovators at every stage of development, from early clinical guidance to multi-centre trials and real-world implementation. Its work is grounded in the belief that improving patient care and achieving commercial success are intrinsically linked.
The CAN Health Network connects healthcare organizations across the country through an integrated market to identify challenges, validate Canadian solutions in real-world settings, and support procurement and scale. Since its launch in 2019, CAN Health has supported commercialization projects with more than 100 Canadian companies, helping strengthen health care delivery while driving economic growth.
“Working alongside the CAN Health Network allows us to help promising Canadian technologies move more efficiently from concept to real-world use,” says Dr. Steve Reynolds, Royal Columbian Hospital ICU physician and AIM Executive Lead. “This helps ensure that solutions developed here can ultimately improve care for patients and support healthcare teams across the country and beyond.”
“The most powerful health care solutions come from solving real problems faced by patients and providers,” said Dante Morra, Founder & CEO, CAN Health Network. “By connecting innovators with frontline health care environments through the AIM Institute, we can test, validate and scale Canadian solutions faster, improving care while helping Canadian companies grow and succeed.”
This partnership between AIM and CAN Health establishes a framework for the two organizations to identify opportunities, align clinical and operational expertise, and accelerate the evaluation and adoption of innovative technologies.
By connecting clinical insight, rigorous evaluation, and national pathways for adoption, the partnership aims to strengthen Canada’s health innovation ecosystem while ensuring that patients, providers and the broader economy benefit.
About Royal Columbian Hospital
As BC’s most comprehensive critical care hospital, one in three British Columbians rely on Royal Columbian Hospital. We are the only hospital in BC with trauma, cardiac, neurosciences, high-risk obstetrics and neonatal intensive care on one site. We look after some of the most seriously ill and injured patients, and we do it with the support of donors like you.
Since 1978, donors to Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation have helped fund priority equipment needs, facility enhancements, research, education and innovation at Royal Columbian Hospital. Visit rchfoundation.com for more information.
As part of Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation, the AIM Institute is a social enterprise that partners with innovative health-tech companies, providing clinical insights grounded in deep expertise, alongside clinical trial design and execution.
About the CAN Health Network
The Coordinated Accessible National (CAN) Health Network is a federally supported, not-for-profit organization that works with health care operators across Canada to identify challenges, validate Canadian innovations in real-world settings, and support procurement and scale. Since its launch in 2019, CAN Health has supported commercialization projects with more than 100 Canadian companies, helping strengthen health care delivery while driving economic growth.
CONTACT: For more information, please contact: Jason Howe Vice President, Marketing and Communications C: 236.332.0798 Jason.Howe@fraserhealth.ca Jennifer Coulman Manager, Communications CAN Health Network jennifer.coulman@canhealthnetwork.ca