Chair's Report

News from the region! Debbie McGarry Regional Director

The days are shorter, the air is crisp and the colours are – well – quite frankly have disappeared. It can only mean the holiday season is upon us and I suspect the busiest time of year for you and your donors. On behalf of the AHP Canada Regional Cabinet, please accept our very best wishes for a happy holiday season!

Hopefully, in the midst of the hustle and bustle, you will have a quiet moment to reflect on your education plans for next year. Your cabinet and volunteers are focused on providing you with an excellent offering of education and networking opportunities to advance your learning.

Career Plans: Philanthropy Pathway

Under the leadership of AHP Canada Education Chair, Lyn Russo, CFRE, we are introducing a new initiative referred to as the Philanthropy Pathway. The pathway outlines opportunities offered under the guidance of AHP, that will assist you in pursuit of your CFRE or FAHP designation.

The chart organizes the information into a menu with four levels of experience to help you make decisions about which opportunities will work for you now and later in your development career. We encourage you to use the pathway when developing your career path or when you assist your direct reports with their career plans. You can download the Philanthropy Pathway chart from the AHP Canada Web site.

From the Lakefront to the Forefront

The 2007 conference Enhancing Health Care: From the Lakefront to the Forefront will be held May 13 – 15 at the scenic Deerhurst Resort in Ontario’s beloved Muskoka area. Marg Jones, CFRE and her team are well underway with conference preparations. If you are interested in volunteering, perhaps, looking to acquire volunteer points for your CFRE application, look no further, contact Marg at jonesma@hhsc.ca.

Congratulations

Many of you may have had the opportunity to experience the AHP Canada Whistler Conference this past June or more recently the AHP International Educational Conference in Orlando. Congratulations to Peak Performance Conference Co-chairs Sue Caruthers, FAHP and Nick Locke and their committee for hosting an education experience that inspired, educated and entertained colleagues while providing ample opportunities to network with other development professionals from across the country.

AHP Canada award recipients honoured at the Whistler Conference award banquet included:

• Saskia Ages, CFRE, Kelowna General Hospital Foundation for Outstanding Development Program
  
  
• Nadine Hubert, Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation for Culture of Philantrhopy.

Highlights from the AHP International Conference in September included:

• The installation of Pearl Veenema, FAHP as Chair of the AHP Board of Directors. I know we will all be proud of Pearl’s leadership for our profession over the coming months.
  
  
• AHP Annual Fund and AHP Membership awards. Congratulations to Linda Saunders, CFRE, Annual Fund Chair and Rhonda Cunningham, CFRE, Membership Chair. I know they are grateful for the tremendous support demonstrated by our membership.
  
  
• The selection of Cathy Chrones, CFRE along with fellow American colleagues, as winners of the 2007 AHP Professional Paper Competition.

AHP Performance Benchmarking Service

You may have heard there are several new business tools that are being used to support growth in health care philanthropy. As you know benchmarks and other metrics have little relevance when used in isolation in relation to resource development goals and processes.

AHP is working in partnership with Growth Design Corporation to develop a national philanthropy benchmarking database. Visit www.ahp.org to learn how you can become part of this Benchmarking Service as a way to strengthen health care philanthropy for your organization.

503 members and counting!

It was an outstanding year for AHP membership. There are now 4,374 members - the highest number of members in AHP history. AHP Canada was recognized for the highest percentage growth in new members. AHP Canada's membership goal this year was to increase our membership from 473 in 2005 to 487 in 2006, a gain of 14 new members. As of October 31, our membership stood at 503 - a gain of 30 new members!! Congratulations to Rhonda Cunningham, CFRE, AHP Canada Membership Chair.

Happy Holidays!

Debbie McGarry
Regional Director, AHP Canada

AHP Canada Award Winners

AHP Canada Awards were presented to two outstanding winners at the regional conference held in June in Whistler, BC:

Culture of Philanthropy Award

The Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation in Ontario

The foundation undertook a major strategy to ensure that everyone at University Health Network (UHN)  -- physicians, management, hospital staff and volunteers -- embraces their responsibility to: promote philanthropy, serve as an ambassador within the organization and communities, give a contribution to best of personal ability, cultivate relationships in support of UHN, help to identify potential donors and volunteers and actively participate in fundraising activities.

Outstanding Development Program Award

Kelowna General Hospital Foundation in BC

The foundation’s submission described how it established its Live Forever – Leave Your Legacy planned giving program. In less than one year, the foundation increased its expectancy of gifts by $5.9 million, and identified 240 individual prospects, who indicated they would consider KGHF in their estate plans. The foundation raised awareness of planned giving in the Kelowna community of professional advisors, local residents and local fundraising professionals.

Healthcare Fundraising Professional of the Year

There were no entries in the Healthcare Fundraising Professional of the Year category, although awards were available for both a small and a large shop.

Lyn Russo, CFRE
Education/Certification
Executive Director
Welland Hospital Foundation
lrusso@niagarahealth.on.ca

Gonser Gerber Tinker Professional Paper Competition - Winners

Congratulations to Cathy Chrones, CFRE,executive director, St. Paul's Hospital Foundation along with Richard Bragga, J.D., FAHP, president, Philanthropy 1 and John Drake, CFRE, president, Irving Healthcare Foundation on winning the AHP Professional Paper Competition for their proposed article, "Administrative Allocation: Financial Necessity or Potential Donor Relations Disaster?" which will be published in the Fall 2007 AHP Journal.

The AHP Journal Professional Paper Competition is designed to promote scholarly endeavours among individual resource development professionals. The winner of the competition is commissioned by AHP, through a $1,000 grant provided by Gonser Gerber Tinker Stuhr.

Case Study: Building a Culture of Philanthropy at
University Health Network

By Pearl Veenema, FAHP, and Nadine Hubert

In 2005, the Board of Directors of Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation (TG&WHF) adopted a three-year strategy designed to build a culture of philanthropy within University Health Network (UHN). The Board’s goal was to ensure that everyone at UHN -- physicians, management, hospital staff and volunteers -- embraces their responsibility to promote philanthropy and actively participate in fundraising activities.

Engagement strategies and communication tactics were designed to specifically meet the needs of these groups. Integral to this approach was a new brand identity developed in conjunction with the hospital around the themes of leadership, innovation and discovery. Concurrent activities were focused on creating greater interaction between the foundation and the hospital to position UHN as a single "family" with common goals.

Examples are summarized in the following:

CEO and Senior Management Engagement: The President and Chief Executive Officer of University Health Network has set the tone for the culture of philanthropy by including a review of major fundraising activities in his report to the Trustees and Senior Management. He and the senior management team actively participate in cultivation, recognition and stewardship events. A Fundraising Priorities and Development Advisory Committee was also formed to develop the top 20 projects for the foundation over the next three years. The CEO and his senior management team led this process. Each of these projects is led by a team comprising a board member, medical/research leader and foundation staff member to “champion” each project.

Physician Engagement: The creation of prescription-style notepads for physicians helped carry the campaign message and provided a convenient means for medical staff to refer prospective donors while respecting privacy legislation. With the enhancement of relationships between the foundation staff and clinicians, there has been increased participation in the identification of prospects from physicians.

Staff Engagement: UHN has just over 10,000 employees. It was important to find a forum that included all these diverse groups. As part of UHN’s Staff Orientation Program, the foundation conducts a 30-minute presentation to complement written materials. Ambassadors representing a wide range of staff functions have been trained on how to approach and solicit staff. Hospital staff members are taking their own initiative in fundraising by organizing events and setting up fundraising web pages.

TG&WHF will continue to build on these elements to promote the value of philanthropy to all stakeholders within UHN and has successfully laid the groundwork for a robust culture of philanthropy that transcends organizational borders and includes all staff.

University Health Network comprises three leading hospitals - Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital and Princess Margaret Hospital. Pearl Veenema, FAHP, is vice president, Advancement and Nadine Hubert is director, communications for Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation.

Big Shoes to Fill...

We would like to take this opportunity to thank Rebecca Green (formerly Hobbs – congrats Rebecca, on your recent nuptials!) for her dedicated service in producing Healthy Attitudes from 2002 to 2005. Rebecca managed to keep us all in line, collecting our articles, formatting our newsletter, and getting it out on time with consistent quality. We’ll miss you Rebecca and we know we have big shoes to fill!

Thanks Rebecca for supporting our healthy attitudes!

From the Provinces

New Brunswick

New Brunswich holds monthly roundtable sessions that are in reality Maritime roundtables and include members from New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Northern Nova Scotia. Meetings are well attended and thirteen hospitals, as well as MindCare NB (the Provincial Mental Health Foundation), are represented. Issues discussed are diverse but common to the membership. Meetings revolve among member locations so we share common interests, learn from common challenges and successes but also see different facilities and work environments.

Recent discussions have covered investment strategies, grateful patient programs, board diversity, group benefits (staff), donor recognition, issuing of “endowment pooled shares”, gift acceptance policies, employee lotteries, and naming policies.

Government relations is a topic of shared interest in New Brunswick and a meeting is being scheduled with foundation directors and their chairs and the newly appointed Minister of Health. This is an annual exercise that was missed in the past year. The meeting is an opportunity for AHP members to raise common interests and concerns as well as educate the Minister of Health and his Department on the work of the AHP membership and the importance of philanthropy.

Tim Cameron
Provincial Representative, New Brunswick
Executive Director
Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation
camti@reg2.health.nb.ca

Ontario

Government Issues

The Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care continues to work with health care professionals on the implementation of Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs). LHINs are an important part of the evolution of health care in Ontario. It is not yet known to what degree hospital foundations will be impacted with respect to the “transfer of property held for charitable purposes."

Nancy Hewat, FAHP
Provincial Representative, Ontario
Executive Director
Grand River Hospital Foundation
nancy.hewat@grhosp.on.ca

Roundtables

AHP Canada roundtables provide you with an excellent opportunity to learn, share information and meet fellow AHP members and are being held across the country. Take advantage of them!

Upcoming roundtables will be focusing on the Philanthropy Pathway - an innovative new tool that will assist fundraisers in laying out the steps they need to take in order to obtain certification. This tool will navigate AHP members through this process, and ultimately we hope that it will encourage you to strive for your CFRE designation.

For more information on roundtables being held in your area, please contact your provincial representative. You can find their contact information by going to the following link: http://www.ahpcanada.com/roundtable.htm.

Mitze Mourinho, CFRE
Roundtables
Campaign Director
St Michael's Hospital Foundation
mourinhom@smh.toronto.on.ca

Editor's Note

Your opinion is important to us!

This issue of Healthy Attitudes is the first to be published with our new, more user-friendly format. Healthy Attitudes will appear quarterly in your inbox, with news from the regions, updates on learning and networking opportunities, as well as features on issues that are important to us in our daily work.

It matters to us that the issues that are important to you as Canadian health care fundraising professionals are dealt with in each issue – but we can’t achieve this goal without your help. Please forward feedback and ideas for articles and issues that you would like to see discussed. You can reach me at dicost@stjoe.on.ca

I am looking forward to hearing from you!

With thanks,

Tony di Cosmo
Communications and RIC
Director of Development
St. Joseph's Health Centre Foundation, Toronto
dicost@stjoe.on.ca

Mark Your Calendar Now!

Join us as we gather by the Muskoka lakefront for outstanding educational sessions and relationship building with our AHP and HCPRA colleagues!

The conference will be held at Deerhurst Resort in Muskoka, Ontario, May 13 - 15. Conference and registration information will be available in early February. For more information about the resort, please call the hotel directly at 1-800-461-4393, or visit them online at www.deerhurstresort.com.

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