Richmond Hospital will get a second Computed Tomography (CT) scanner thanks to a $10 million donation from a Richmond business owner and his family.

“Because my company operates from its base in Richmond, it made sense to give back to the local community,” said Dan On, founder and owner of Richmond-based Dan-D Foods Ltd.

On, who immigrated to Canada after escaping from Vietnam in 1979, is a dedicated philanthropist.

He said the Richmond Hospital has been around “for a long time” and is in need of a “facelift,” and he was inspired by his employees and local business partners to make the donation.

Members of the local community, including Richmond-Queensborough MLA Aman Singh and members of the city council, gathered at Richmond Hospital on Tuesday to celebrate the donation.

“Having a second CT Scanner means doubling our capacity to serve those patients who are in dire need of scans,” Dr. Tracy Chandler, Richmond Hospital radiologist, told attendees.

CT is the “primary imaging tool” used in the hospital, Chandler explained, adding that “medical imaging or radiology plays a pivotal role in the diagnosis of disease and in monitoring a patient’s response to treatments.”

For 13 years, before On’s donation, the hospital only had one CT scanner.

“… Which means that every day we are forced to juggle the delicate balance of sharing this critical piece of equipment between our acutely sick hospital patients as well as with our community outpatients,” said Chandler.

With a second machine, doctors will be able to make “more rapid diagnoses,” “perform state-of-the-art exams” currently not available and be able to avoid interruptions when one scanner is under maintenance.

The new machine will also benefit the hospital’s emergency department, which relies on timely access to the scanner.

Apart from the new CT machine, $5 million from the new donation will be put toward creating a “calm, healing environment” for patients in single occupancy rooms and funding new technologies in the new Yurkovich Family Pavillion.