St. Michael's Hospital Foundation

06/04/2026

This landmark recognition is a testament to what’s possible when visionary philanthropy backs bold ideas.

We’re honoured to be included in Canada’s new federal AI Strategy and deeply grateful to the donor community that got us here.

We are especially thankful for the transformational support of the Li Ka Shing (Canada) Foundation, whose early investment laid the groundwork for AI and data analytics research at St. Michael’s Hospital. We also recognize Birch Hill Equity Partners, Scotiabank through its community investment program, ScotiaRISE, and Bernie Syron, whose support of GEMINI helped pave the path to VITAL.

Proud moment! 👏👏👏 The VITAL health data platform, based at St. Michael’s Hospital, is part of Canada’s new federal AI Strategy announced by Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday. 🇨🇦

$100 million in funding will help VITAL deliver near-real-time health data from hospitals across Canada. This brings the total investment in VITAL to over $210 million in federal, provincial and institutional funding – a landmark investment in health care innovation.

Founded by St. Michael's Hospital physicians Amol Verma and Fahad Razak, VITAL breaks down the silos of our current system and allows scientists and innovators to harness Canada’s rich pool of health data to develop scalable AI tools, expand Canada’s capabilities for research and clinical trials, and provide important insights to fortify the Canadian health care system.

The platform will begin with 160 hospitals in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec with plans to expand to other jurisdictions. This will make it one of the most valuable health data resources in the world.

Learn more: https://unityhealth.to/2026/06/vital-health-data-platform-ai-for-all?&utm_source=FB&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=260604-VITAL

06/03/2026

Congratulations to Aldo Di Felice, recipient of the Foundation’s 2026 Outstanding Volunteer Award. Aldo has been a dedicated volunteer since 2008, serving on our President’s Council and leading multiple fundraising events. He is a passionate,
engaging community builder who generously contributes his time and leadership to advance exceptional care at St. Michael’s Hospital.

We are delighted to honour Aldo with this well-deserved award.

05/30/2026

Mikayla Gallo was a few months away from her 21st birthday when the dizziness hit her in her kitchen and didn’t stop.

For months she'd experienced Bell’s palsy on one side of her face, tingling in her legs, and the dizziness. When she finally received a multiple sclerosis diagnosis, she thought everything she’d planned—travelling, dating, having kids—would be gone.

A referral to Dr. Alexandra Muccilli at the BARLO MS Centre gave her encouragement and hope. She learned to walk again. She found joy on the golf course with her dad, her boyfriend, her brother, her uncles, and her boyfriend. And when the need to give back hit, she and her family organized a golf tournament in six weeks, went door-to-door collecting prizes, and stood in front of a crowd on tournament day to tell her story and raised nearly $15,000.

Today Mikayla is in teachers’ college, walking firmly toward the future she once thought was gone.

Read her story at https://bit.ly/4vh6NaK

05/29/2026

Transforming emergency care at St. Mike's required bold vision and extraordinary generosity. The Slaight Family Emergency Department was made possible through the leadership support of Gary and Donna Slaight, Ada Slaight and The Slaight Family Foundation, along with the Government of Ontario.

Key spaces within the department were also supported by The Arrell Family Foundation, which made the Arrell Acute Care Area possible, and BMO Financial Group, whose support helped create the BMO Ambulatory Care Area—alongside many generous donors who came together to help us reimagine emergency care.

Thank you for standing behind the patients, families, and frontline teams who depend on St. Mike's in life's most critical moments.

05/29/2026

Time is running out.

In just a few days, the opportunity to double your impact will be gone.

Right now, moms and babies experiencing homelessness are relying on St. Michael’s Hospital for life-saving, compassionate care.

Until May 31, every dollar you give will be matched by the Sandra Schmirler Foundation, helping twice as many families get the support they need.

💙 Please don’t wait. Make your matched gift today: https://bit.ly/3PaUWeJ

05/29/2026

We are proud to celebrate Dr. Kim Connelly as our 2026 Spirit of Philanthropy Award recipient.

St. Mike’s Head of Cardiology and the Keenan Chair in Research Leadership, Dr. Connelly, brings extraordinary heart to everything he does—from leading one of the country’s top cardiology programs to championing the Hospital far beyond its walls, including on the pickleball courts at Paddle Royale (where he famously challenged Ben Stiller to a match.)

Thank you for inspiring a culture of showing up and giving back. Congratulations!

05/28/2026

What does living with type 1 diabetes in early adulthood actually look like?

Within the Highs and Lows: Young and Type 1 is a first-of-its kind exhibit featuring 30+ raw, intimate photographs taken by 22 young Canadians who are living it. Co-led by Dr. Andrew Advani and Dr. Cheryl Pritlove at St. Michael's Hospital, the participants and the storytellers of this exhibit are the same people.

Blood sugar checks, insulin, tracking every meal and every workout all happen around first jobs, new relationships, and figuring out who you are. These photographs take the conversations beyond the clinical context of type 1 diabetes, and into real life.

Add your voice to the interactive reflection wall. Pick up the 70-page ‘zine. Stay a while and chat with our researchers.

The exhibit and underlying research were made possible through private donor support, a gift from Cadillac Fairview and the Robin Deverteuil Foundation in support of youth empowerment and type 1 diabetes, along with a federal grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.

📍 Arta Gallery, 14 Distillery Lane, Distillery District, Toronto
📅 May 29–31

Join us. Learn more: https://unityhealth.to/2026/05/photo-exhibit-type-1-diabetes-in-young-adulthood/

05/16/2026

At St. Mike’s, our exceptional nurses are at the heart of everything we do. This Nursing Week, we want to recognize their efforts. We asked a few of our doctors to reflect on how essential our nurses are to patients and to the everyday fabric of care at our hospital. Here’s what they had to say:

“When a trauma patient comes through our doors, every second is a fight for survival. What I have seen, time and again, is that St. Mike’s nurses bring an instinctive ability to assess and act that makes the difference between life and death. They anticipate, they adapt, and they walk into the most critical moments of a person’s life to give everything they have. To all our nurses in the OR: thank you.”

– Dr. Najma Ahmed, Surgeon in Chief, St. Michael’s Hospital

Unity Health Toronto

05/14/2026

At St. Mike’s, our exceptional nurses are at the heart of everything we do. This Nursing Week, we want to recognize their efforts. We asked a few of our doctors to reflect on how essential our nurses are to patients and to the everyday fabric of care at our hospital. Here’s what they had to say:

“As physicians, we spend around 20 minutes per visit with a patient. But it’s the nurses who run our chemotherapies, sometimes for up to eight hours per treatment. There is so much handholding, listening, reassurance, and affirmation in all these visits. And we are able to do this because of the most competent and professional group of oncology nurses in the city. Patients tell me that they are “the engine that runs our clinic”, “they are the glue that holds the puzzle pieces together”, “they are the sunshine and water for the many parts of our garden.” I am always in awe of their compassion and discipline. A big thank you to all our St. Mike's nurses for helping to cure, heal, and make every patient’s care special.”

– Dr. Martina Trinkaus, Department of Oncology and Hematology, St. Michael’s Hospital

Unity Health Toronto

05/13/2026

At St. Mike’s, our exceptional nurses are at the heart of everything we do. This Nursing Week, we want to recognize their efforts. We asked a few of our doctors to reflect on how essential our nurses are to patients and to the everyday fabric of care at our hospital. Here’s what they had to say:

“Our nurses watch patients and can tell if they are moving in a positive direction or not. Nurses comfort patients and their families as they go through some of the most distressing events in their lives. Nurses even train other nurses and junior doctors. Some of my most important learnings came from senior nurses on the ward, in the ICU, and in the OR. Nurses are technical specialists with clinical expertise. With their knowledge and experience, they could go anywhere in the world. We are so grateful that our St. Mike’s nurses have chosen to work in our teams, care for our patients, and those in our community."

– Dr. Bobby Yanagawa, Head of the Division of Cardiac Surgery, St. Michael’s Hospital

Unity Health Toronto