Grant and Funding Programs Offered by Foundation of the Home Palliative Care Society (FSSPAD)

The Foundation of the Home Palliative Care Society (Fondation de la SSPAD, FSSPAD) is a charitable foundation based in Montréal. Created in 1980 as the Fondation Docteur Maurice‑Bertrand, it was established by supporters of the Association d’Entraide Ville‑Marie, now the Société de soins palliatifs à domicile du Grand Montréal (SSPAD). Its sole purpose is to raise, manage and allocate private funds so that SSPAD can deliver free, high‑quality home palliative care and services to people living with advanced, incurable illness and their caregivers.

Over more than four decades, the foundation has granted over 20 million dollars to SSPAD, helping the organization care for tens of thousands of patients and their families at no cost. The foundation’s support allows SSPAD to offer intensive nursing care, psychological and spiritual support, respite services, equipment loans and innovative outreach projects such as Maison Mobile, while keeping wait times low and maintaining one of the highest rates of death at home in Québec.

FSSPAD operates as a discretionary philanthropic funder rather than through open call‑for‑proposal programs. It collects donations from individuals, families, corporations and partners, and then allocates these resources to the operating needs and development projects of SSPAD. The foundation offers several giving options, including one‑time and monthly gifts, in‑memoriam donations, planned gifts (bequests, RRSP/RRIF, life insurance, real estate and securities) and community fundraising events such as golf tournaments or marathons.

Major fundraising campaigns and flagship events, notably the Concert for Dignity and the Evening for Dignity, play a central role in sustaining revenues year after year. The foundation issues official tax receipts for eligible donations and reports transparently on its financial results in the joint annual report of SSPAD and FSSPAD, where a dedicated foundation section presents its mission, campaigns and impact.

The foundation’s primary and essentially exclusive beneficiary is the Société de soins palliatifs à domicile du Grand Montréal, a non‑profit healthcare provider recognized as a key home palliative care resource in Québec. Through SSPAD, the funds raised support patients in the advanced stages of cancer and other serious pathologies, including cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, as well as their family caregivers living in the east and north territories of Montréal.

Foundation funding helps cover clinical care (24/7 nursing, physician on‑call systems, specialized symptom management), hygiene and comfort care, psychological and spiritual support, respite for caregivers, bereavement follow‑up, medical supplies and transportation. It also underpins teaching and research activities in palliative care, partnerships with hospitals and community organizations, and targeted initiatives to reach people experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity.

FSSPAD is overseen by an executive board composed of volunteers drawn from the business, legal, health and community sectors. The president, vice‑presidents, treasurer, secretary and several administrators meet to set strategic orientations, supervise fundraising strategies and approve the allocation of funds to SSPAD. A separate Council of Governors, mentioned in the annual report, contributes to the foundation’s influence and major campaigns.

Named staff dedicated to the foundation manage day‑to‑day operations: a managing director shared with SSPAD, senior advisors in communications, events and planned giving, and an administrative coordinator. Their contact details are available on the official website, reinforcing the transparency of the organization. Each year, audited financial statements and narrative reports detail revenues, expenses and the concrete impact of donations on the volume and quality of care delivered at home.

By focusing its funding on one specialized health organization, the Foundation of the Home Palliative Care Society plays a pivotal role in Montréal’s end‑of‑life care ecosystem. Its financial support allows more than a thousand patients per year, and hundreds of caregivers, to receive comprehensive home‑based palliative services, often enabling them to remain at home until death when that is their wish. In a context of an aging population and growing demand for community‑based care, FSSPAD’s grants act as a complement to public funding and help sustain an integrated, human‑centred model of care.