SickKids Foundation has launched a “record-breaking” $2.5-billion fundraising campaign to pay for care tailored to each child’s genetics and environment. The foundation announced the fundraising campaign, Heal the Future, on Monday, saying it is the largest pediatric health-care fundraising campaign across the globe. This campaign is set to “move precision medicine from possibility towards reality,” by putting the money earned towards Precision Child Health. Precision Child Health isn’t a clinic or department, but the individualized approach SickKids says they take to care for their pediatric patients, so everyone receives care tailored to their needs. The foundation says the future of pediatric healthcare needs more than a “one-size-fits-all approach,” and funds raised by Heal the Future will go toward that ambition of redefining this future. This practice looks to achieve three things: cutting down the time to diagnose patients so families have answers faster; reducing side effects and adverse reactions by targeting underlying causes; and predicting the outcome more clearly while there is time to prevent or reduce the severity of an illness. “At SickKids, we believe that when we truly see each child as an individual, everything changes, which is why we are pushing past the limits of one-size-fits-all medicine to focus deeply on what makes each patient who they are,” said Dr. Ronald Cohn, president and CEO of SickKids Hospital. “Precision Child Health represents next-generation care, for the next generation, and this historic campaign will ensure we deliver on that promise.” Ahead of Monday’s announcement, SickKids said more than $1.03 billion in donations and pledges have already been committed since April 1, 2023, when the campaign quietly launched. TheNext150, a group made of 133 donors, have made commitments of $1 million or more toward the campaign, representing $351 million collectively. The foundation says they have helped “lay the groundwork” for the next 150 years at SickKids. “We are funding the fight for a better tomorrow and calling on our incredible community of donors and supporters to help us build the momentum needed to achieve our goal. The stakes have never been higher, but neither has the opportunity before us,” said Jennifer Bernard, president and CEO of the SickKids Foundation. To mark the start of this campaign, SickKids is putting out an immersive play “I See You” in partnership with Outside the March, The Musical Stage Company and Crow’s Theatre. The stories featured in this theatrical production reflect Precision Child Health’s promises and show how individualized care can “transform outcomes for children and youth to create healthier futures for generations to come.”
