Fund launched to help frontline healthcare providers

TORONTO – In support of Canadian frontline healthcare workers battling COVID-19, hospital foundation leaders across Canada have come together to launch The Frontline Fund – a way for all Canadians and Canadian corporations to help frontline healthcare providers get the supplies, supports and research funding they need to fight this public health emergency, and to support northern communities and indigenous health.

“The situation our frontline healthcare workers are facing is unprecedented,” said Caroline Riseboro (pictured), president and CEO, Trillium Health Partners Foundation, a member of the steering committee for The Frontline Fund. “They are working around the clock, at risk of contracting COVID-19. They are isolating themselves from their families to avoid spreading the virus. They are tired, anxious, and under relentless pressure to keep fighting. And yet, every day, they go back to work to protect us. We need to protect them, too.”

Due to all the important work going into fighting the novel coronavirus, hospitals are facing unprecedented costs and strain, which are being shouldered by the healthcare workers on the frontline. When Canadians donate to The Frontline Fund, they’ll be providing relief to these valiant caregivers through three key pillars:

1. Supplies: From personal protective equipment (PPE) like masks, disinfectants, and disposable clothing; to life-saving ventilators and testing equipment; to the digital infrastructure needed to enable virtual patient care, frontline healthcare workers need more tools to win this battle and keep Canadians safe.
2. Supports: Being on the frontlines of this pandemic takes a huge toll. Gift cards, peer-to-peer mental health support, and hotel rooms near the hospital will help our frontline workers protect their families, get much needed rest, and prepare themselves for the effort ahead.
3. Research: Hospitals need funding to conduct vital research like clinical drug trials to discover therapeutic breakthroughs and intense vaccine development efforts.

The Frontline Fund is grateful to its founding partner donors for their generous early support. These include Lead Financial Institution donor TD Bank Group with a donation of $1 million, Maple Leaf Foods with a donation of $2.5 million and the CMA Foundation, with a donation of $5 million for a combined total of $8.5 million in contributions to-date.

Michael McCain, CEO of Maple Leaf Foods, made a generous donation on behalf of the company in hopes of inspiring others to give. “Our governments are doing everything they can to help, but they can’t do it alone,” said McCain. “Our healthcare workers are not just on the front lines – they are the last line of defence against COVID-19 and without them, we are hopeless. We need to do everything we can to support them right now.”

The Frontline Fund has partnered with CanadaHelps.org to make it easy and efficient for Canadians to get involved. All donations from individuals will flow through Canada Helps and be aggregated so that funds given remain in the province of the donor. Individuals and corporations can donate to The Frontline Fund by visiting FrontlineFund.ca. The first round of fund disbursements will take place on April 30, 2020.

About The Frontline Fund
The Frontline Fund was created by leaders in the healthcare fundraising sector who formed a national coalition to help leading Canadian hospitals and foundations raise urgently needed funds to support the highest priority needs of participating hospital foundations, including support for COVID-19 and for the Northern Territories and Indigenous health.