MUHC Foundation

What MUHC Foundation does

The MUHC Foundation (Fondation du Centre universitaire de santé McGill) is the primary philanthropic arm of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), one of Canada's foremost academic health networks. Founded in 2017 through the merger of the Royal Victoria Hospital Foundation and the Montreal Chest Institute Foundation, the registered Canadian charity (registration 86843 3947 RR0001) operates with a 24-person staff from Montreal, Quebec, and channeled $34.5 million across 150 projects in FY2024-2025, with 89% of grants directed to innovation-focused programs. The foundation supports the MUHC and its Research Institute (IR-CUSM), which serves a population of 1.9 million people across 63% of Quebec's territory and comprises 744 researchers producing 2,553+ peer-reviewed publications annually.

The foundation's portfolio spans multiple targeted fundraising campaigns addressing major health priorities: cancer ($35M End Cancer), cardiac care ($50M Fix Broken Hearts), respiratory health ($10M Breathe Easier), women's health ($5M Women's Health Fund), palliative care ($3M), and rare genetic diseases (SDR Project). It funds development of proprietary medical technologies including DOvEEgene (a genomic Pap test for early detection of ovarian and endometrial cancer that has enrolled over 5,000 women and identified more than 85 cancers), the MyHeart Counts Canada AI-powered mobile application, 3D bio-printing for lung tissue reconstruction, and the SDR Project genetic sequencing platform capable of analyzing up to 25,000 genes. Signature events include the annual Le Bal Rouge gala (raised $2,223,306 in 2026), the Raise Craze campaign with The Beat 92.5 and Pink in the City ($162,160 in 2025), and the inaugural Course vers la Percée marathon run ($164,800 in 2025). The foundation also produces two podcast series (Doctors Unscripted and Intensive Caring: Voices from the ICU).

The foundation's revenue is generated entirely through charitable donations: one-time and monthly recurring contributions, commemorative and tribute giving, major gifts, corporate sponsorships, event proceeds, and matching-gift programs. In FY2024-2025, it raised $36,475,518 from 27,369 donations, completing the $200M+ Osez rêver campaign. Its go-to-market combines event-driven fundraising (galas, community events, peer-to-peer campaigns) with direct-to-consumer digital giving, supported by a network of corporate partners including Rio Tinto, Scotiabank, BMO, Mouvement Desjardins, AtkinsRéalis, Merck, La Vie en Rose, and Héritage MD. The foundation is accredited by Imagine Canada and recognized globally through the 2025 Newsweek World's Best Hospitals ranking awarded to the Montreal Chest Institute.

Name

MUHC Foundation

Legal name

Fondation du Centre universitaire de santé McGill

Website

https://fondationcusm.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The MUHC Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the McGill University Health Centre, raising charitable donations to fund medical research, patient care, and innovative healthcare technologies across cancer, cardiac, respiratory, women's health, and rare disease programs in Quebec.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Philanthropy

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

akta.pro primary industry

Hospitals, Clinics & Charitable Healthcare Providers (BPAGACAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL), Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA)

Keywords

• Healthcare philanthropy
• Medical research fundraising
• Hospital foundation giving
• Charitable healthcare grants
• Donor stewardship

Headquarters

HQ city

Montreal

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Donations: Primary revenue stream from individual donors making one-time or recurring donations. The foundation raised $36,475,518 in 2024-2025 and over $200 million total through its Osez rêver campaign.
2. Event Fundraising: Revenue generated from signature events including Le Bal Rouge gala (raised over $10.8 million since 2016), Raise Craze campaign, and Course vers la Percée marathon.
3. Corporate Partnerships and Sponsorships: Strategic partnerships with corporations providing financial support, matching donations, and in-kind contributions for healthcare initiatives.
4. Campaign Fundraising: Time-limited major campaigns targeting specific healthcare priorities such as the $200M Osez rêver campaign, $5M Women's Health Fund, $50M cardiac care, $35M cancer, $10M respiratory, and $3M palliative care campaigns.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The MUHC Foundation is a charitable foundation that raises philanthropic donations to fund medical research, patient care programs, and equipment purchases at the McGill University Health Centre. It channels individual gifts, corporate sponsorships, and proceeds from fundraising events into specific clinical and research initiatives spanning cancer, cardiac care, respiratory medicine, women's health, and palliative care.

Product overview

The MUHC Foundation operates as a healthcare philanthropy organization supporting the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC). Rather than a single product, it offers a portfolio of fundraising campaigns and initiatives addressing major health priorities: cancer (including the DOvEEgene diagnostic test), cardiac care, respiratory health, genetic diseases (SDR Project), women's health, and palliative care. The Foundation also develops digital health tools including the MyHeart Counts Canada mobile app, produces podcast series (Doctors Unscripted, Intensive Caring), and organizes signature fundraising events including Le Bal Rouge gala, Raise Craze, and the Breakthrough Run. The Foundation connects donors to innovative medical research and patient care at Quebec's largest research hospital.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Le Bal Rouge: Annual flagship gala event of the MUHC Foundation that brings together leaders from business, philanthropy, and healthcare to celebrate innovation at the MUHC.
• Course vers la Percée (Breakthrough Run)
• Raise Craze
• Doctors Unscripted
• Intensive Caring: Voices from the ICU

Products and services

• MyHeart Counts Canada

Quantifiable outcome

• DOvEEgene test detects ovarian/endometrial cancer at Stage I vs Stage III/IV with conventional methods
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.

• Scotiabank Wealth ManagementmajorGTM or Marketing Partner · 15 October 2025Sponsored the 2nd Scotia Conference on Women's Health featuring researchers Dr Julia Burnier, Dr Loydie Anne Jerome-Majewska, and Dr Stella Daskalopoulou.
• The Beat 92.5coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 October 2025Radio station partnership for Raise Craze breast cancer awareness campaign. Morning show host Lee Haberkorn participated by dyeing and shaving his hair, with co-hosts Claudia Marques and Natasha Gargiulo supporting. Campaign raised $162,160 for breast cancer care at MUHC.
• Pink in the CitycoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 October 2025Long-standing partnership since 2014 for Raise Craze campaign to end breast cancer. President Denise Vourtzoumis leads the movement inspired by her son's courage. Partnership includes annual head-shaving and hair-dyeing events.
• Association canadienne pour l'équité en santé des femmes (ACESF)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 March 2025MUHC Foundation joined ACESF as the first Quebec member, strengthening national alliance to advance women's health research and equity with bilingual representation.
• Imagine CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Accreditation body certifying MUHC Foundation met 73 rigorous standards for nonprofit excellence in governance, financial accountability, fundraising practices, HR management, and volunteer involvement.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Fondation du CHUM: The philanthropy arm of the Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal, the other major academic health centre in Montreal. Operates the same hospital-foundation fundraising model in the same Quebec market with overlapping donor pools.
• IWK Foundation: Foundation supporting the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, a Maritime academic women's and children's health centre. Operates the same hospital-foundation fundraising model in a smaller Canadian market.
• SickKids Foundation: Canada's largest children's hospital foundation, supporting Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children. Operates the same academic-pediatric-hospital philanthropy model at significantly greater scale, providing a benchmark for campaign capacity and corporate engagement.
• BC Children's Hospital Foundation: Philanthropy arm of BC Children's Hospital, sharing the academic hospital-foundation model with similar capital-campaign and signature-event fundraising approaches.
• Alberta Children's Hospital Foundation: Foundation supporting Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary. Same pediatric academic hospital philanthropy model with comparable capital campaign and community fundraising practices.
• Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation: Foundation supporting the Stollery Children's Hospital in Edmonton, Alberta. Comparable pediatric academic hospital philanthropy model with similar capital campaign and corporate sponsorship structures.
• Vancouver General Hospital Foundation: Foundation supporting Vancouver's largest academic health sciences centre on the West Coast. Comparable model of fundraising for research, equipment, and patient care at a leading Canadian tertiary hospital.
• CHU Sainte-Justine Foundation: Foundation supporting Quebec's largest pediatric and maternal university hospital, also based in Montreal. Comparable mission, governance structure, and capital campaign approach, including Imagine Canada accreditation.

Broad incumbents

• Canadian Cancer Society: Canada's largest national cancer-focused nonprofit, funding research, advocacy, and support across the country. While not a hospital foundation, it competes for cancer-research philanthropy that the MUHC Foundation's $35M Ending Cancer campaign is also targeting.

Emerging players

• Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada: National health-focused nonprofit that funds cardiovascular and stroke research including at MUHC. Operates a different model (national disease-focused nonprofit vs. single-hospital foundation) but competes for overlapping corporate sponsors and individual donors.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/muhcfoundation
• Facebookfacebook.com/FondationduCUSM
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/muhc-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/muhcfoundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about MUHC Foundation