Hospital
“This hospital is a monument which will draw comment when the province celebrates its 100th Anniversary that the people of Saskatchewan, in 1955, built better than they knew.”
– Premier Tommy Douglas, Father of Medicare
Saskatchewan was celebrating its 50th anniversary on Saturday, May 14, 1955, when then-Premier Tommy Douglas stood on the threshold of the new University Hospital and dedicated its walls to the health and well-being of everyone in our province.
It took eight years to construct the seven-wing, seven-storey hospital, at a cost of $13 million, using more than 14,000 tonnes of local fieldstone. From the outset, RUH has been an inseparable partner of the University of Saskatchewan’s College of Medicine, fostering an intellectual environment in which patient care is strengthened daily through the application of medical research and the pursuit of knowledge.
The opening of RUH fulfilled a huge need in the province:
- A first-class hospital facility with diagnostic equipment and laboratories was now linked with the University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine to deliver a comprehensive health program.
- A partnership between training and healthcare was in place to create the most important medical centre in the province, one which would raise the standard of medical treatment throughout Saskatchewan.
Within the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA), Royal University Hospital serves as a leader in providing acute-care services for the province. The hospital serves as the main trauma centre for the entire province, specializes in neurosurgery and cardiovascular surgery, oncology including Saskatchewan’s only Stem Cell Transplant Program, PET-CT Centre, and cardiology, oncology, and respirology departments.
Commemorating Someone Special
Looking for a unique and thoughtful way to honour a friend, family member, colleague, group or company or to remember a loved one? Purchase a seat in RUH’s Theatre in the Mall or Vivian K. Asher Theater! Included in your purchase is a randomly selected seat with etched armrest plaque. Available seats are limited so hurry and get one! $10 per pay period for 26 pay periods through payroll deductions or $260 by cash, cheque or credit card. Anyone can purchase one! Honour someone special or leave your own legacy.
To purchase a seat, complete a Purchase Form and return it by mail to the RUH Foundation office, 103 Hospital Drive, Saskatoon, SK S7N 0W3; in person in the Foundation office in the main mall; by fax to 306.655.1979; or by email to info@ruhf.org.
This signed and numbered print is perfect for that special co-worker or volunteer at RUH that is retiring or leaving. Please contact our Foundation office at 306.655.1984 to arrange to pick up a signed copy of the print. You are responsible for having the print matted and framed and a plaque with the person’s name made.
The idea of having a permanent place to honour a co-worker or volunteer currently working at RUH or upon their retirement, or to remember someone dear to you who has passed away originated in 2012 with the passing of Warren Chykowski from the Respiratory Therapy Department. His friends and co-workers asked RUH Foundation for ideas on what might be done to honour a life well lived and the impact he had on patient care. The Memory/Honour Tree Grove provides a visual place in the Royal Gardens that tells a story of the caring and compassionate people who, through their work and life, contributed to the legacy of RUH.
To purchase a leaf on one of the Memory/Honour Grove trees to commemorate a someone, please complete a request form.
For more information on purchasing a theatre seat or obtaining either a Cam Forrester print for a retiring RUH staff member or volunteer or a Memory Tree leaf for someone important to you, please contact RUH Foundation at 306.655.1984 or visit the Foundation office in the main mall.
