Landmark gift to Trillium Health Partners’ Institute for Better Health to accelerate the learning health system research needed to improve health and health care for all
Trillium Health Partners Foundation (THPF) is delighted to announce a $5 million donation from Elisabeth Hofmann to Trillium Health Partners’ (THP) Institute for Better Health (IBH), the largest gift to date to the hospital’s research and innovation institute.
Mrs. Hofmann was introduced to health care through her husband, the engineer and inventor Gabor Zellerman, and took over running his small company, Accurate Surgical Instruments Corporation, when he died. She rapidly grew the company into an international powerhouse, with sales trips that introduced her to hospitals in Canada and around the world. Her connection to health care gives her an appreciation for the importance of funding innovative research and her gift to IBH will enable the research needed to create health system changes within THP, the community and beyond.
THP is one of the largest hospitals in the country, serving the 2.2 million people in the West GTA, one of Canada’s most diverse and rapidly growing communities with increasingly complex health needs. Aligned and embedded within THP, IBH is pioneering a new kind of research and innovation that discovers novel and unique ways to improve health and health care for better outcomes and experiences. Since its inception in 2014, IBH has become a world-class research institute focused on cutting-edge science and innovation in health service delivery and population health.
Too often research and quality improvements fail to be adopted because researchers and frontline staff are not working together. To address that gap, IBH is committed to a Learning Health Systems approach that aligns research with patient-centred care to generate practical knowledge that can be applied swiftly at the bedside while also informing ongoing improvement throughout the system. Key to the success of this vision is integrating data and experiences with evidence to continuously improve care to better meet the growing needs of the community. IBH is uniquely positioned to advance the Learning Health Systems model to ensure new knowledge is shared and embedded into practice to improve the health of our community.
IBH is home to world-renowned scientists and experts including: Dr. Robert Reid, Hazel McCallion Research Chair in Learning Health Systems and Chief Scientist, IBH and Senior Vice President Science, THP; Dr. Walter Wodchis, Research Chair in Implementation and Evaluation Science and Senior Scientist; Dr. Kerry Kuluski, Dr. Mathias Gysler Research Chair in Patient and Family Centred Care and Scientist; and Dr. Laura Rosella, Stephen Family Research Chair in Community Health and Scientist.
“Mrs. Hofmann’s generous donation is a very significant milestone for IBH, THP and our broader community in realizing our vision of embedding research right into the fabric of how our health care system creates and learns. This transformational gift will accelerate our ability to attract leading talent, build advanced population health data infrastructures and amplify our research programs to enable rapid-cycle health system change within our hospital, community and beyond,” said Dr. Reid.
Mrs. Hofmann’s generous donation to IBH will enable and embed the Learning Health Systems model across IBH and in our community by growing scientific capacity in this area, establishing an accelerator fund to support complementary research and innovation, and growing infrastructure to access and analyze population health data.
“I’m just a person that if I see something can be made better, and people will benefit, I want to help. I could see that Dr. Reid and IBH are creating something better that will benefit THP and can then be shared with other hospitals. My gift will support this important work and I encourage others to give as well,” said Mrs. Hofmann.
“Mrs. Hofmann’s generosity gives our dedicated research institute, IBH, the tools and talent needed to deliver on our hospital’s mission to create a new kind of health care for a healthier community. We are so grateful to Mrs. Hofmann for this most generous gift to accelerate the important work of our scientists,” added Caroline Riseboro, President and CEO of the THP Foundation.
About Trillium Health Partners Foundation
Trillium Health Partners Foundation is dedicated to raising the critical funds needed to address the highest priority needs of Trillium Health Partners, the largest community-based hospital network in Canada. For more information, please visit trilliumgiving.ca.
About Trillium Health Partners
Trillium Health Partners is the largest community-based hospital network in Canada. Comprised of Credit Valley Hospital, Mississauga Hospital and Queensway Health Centre, Trillium Health Partners serves the growing and diverse populations of Mississauga, West Toronto and surrounding communities. Trillium Health Partners is a teaching hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto and home of the Institute for Better Health. For more information, visit thp.ca.
About the Institute for Better Health
As THP’s research and innovation engine, the Institute for Better Health (IBH) is a core enabler of THP’s mission of a new kind of health care for a healthier community through the application of scientific expertise, innovative thinking and partnerships. Focused on generating cutting-edge science and innovation in health service delivery and population health, IBH leads practical research and innovation that shapes how we engage, design, deliver, and finance health care to solve problems stretching from the bedside to the system.
