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1. What do you fund?
At the
Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation (ACHF), we proudly inspire our
community to invest in excellence in child health, research and family
centred care. Through our Child Health Grant Program, donations are used
for projects that make the biggest difference in child health outcomes.
Our child health funding priority areas include:
- Brain Health (Neurosciences and Mental Health);
These priority areas benefit one or more of the following areas:
We fund innovative projects that usually fall into the following areas:
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Pilot programs that test a new practice or service to address specific child health issues;
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Industry-leading equipment and facility enhancements to improve clinical care and save lives;
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Enhancements that support the child and family experience at the Alberta Children’s Hospital;
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Strategic programs of research to increase knowledge and understanding of child health and/or improve health care delivery;
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Quality improvement research to improve clinical care;
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Education and training to build the capacity of researchers,
clinicians and other health care professionals linked to a strategy to
improve child health outcomes; and
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Solutions that address emerging needs in child health.
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2. Who do you fund?
We consider funding requests from our key partners:
- Alberta Children’s Hospital/Alberta Health Services(ACH/AHS) related to child health needs in southern Alberta; and
- Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute/University of Calgary (ACHRI/UofC).
We
also consider funding requests from non-profit, community-based
organizations who work in partnership with one or both of our key
partners.
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3. What are your funding criteria? What do you look for in a grant request?
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Clear and compelling description of need;
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Feasibility of strategy to address identified need;
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Achievable and measurable child health outcomes;
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Strong alignment to ACH, AHS, ACHRI and ACHF priorities;
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Budget appropriate to the scope of the project;
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Uses existing strengths and resources of key partners;
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Investments from other funding sources;
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Plans for sharing and translation of results; and
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Sustainability of project after ACHF funding ends.
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4. What is not eligible for funding?
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5. Is there a minimum or maximum amount you will grant?
No,
we expect that a submission for a grant will be based on a budget that
has received the proper due diligence for the scope of the project.
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6. Are multi-year projects eligible?
Yes, we will consider multi-year projects. All multi-year projects are subject to annual reporting and review.
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7. How much was granted last year?
In
2013-14, thanks to the generosity of community donors, our Foundation
approved grants totaling $26M to support 30 child health projects.
Grants ranged in size from $12,000 to $3,500,000 and from one to five
years in length. The value and % of projects funded by primary area of
benefit was:
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8. What if I’m not sure whether my project idea meets the Foundation’s priorities or criteria?
If
you are unsure, please contact us and we would be happy to answer your
questions before you invest your time and efforts into preparing a
submission.
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9. How do I apply for a grant?
Our
application process provides you with an opportunity to share your
project idea through an open and fair process, which includes the
meaningful participation of our key partners, ACH/AHS and ACHRI/UofC.
The three main steps in the application process are:
STEP 1: DRAFT A LETTER OF INTENT (LOI)
Draft a LOI using the LOI Guide & Form we have prepared to help you - click here to download.
The LOI is meant to provide you with an opportunity to describe your
project – it should be sufficient to provide an understanding of what
you wish to do, why this is important to child health and why you
require community funding.
STEP 2: SECURE SPONSORSHIP
We
recommend that you contact your potential sponsoring organization as
soon as possible to discuss your project. It’s best to make the request
for sponsorship while you are developing and drafting your LOI.
Leadership from one or more of our key partners must sponsor your LOI,
before it is submitted to the Child Health Grant Program. This
sponsorship lets us know that the project proposed in your LOI is a
priority of our key partners. Sponsorship may take several weeks so be
aware of any deadlines that ACH/AHS and ACHRI/UofC may have. For more information about sponsorship click here.
STEP 3: SUBMIT YOUR SPONSORED LOI TO ACHF
Once
sponsorship is secured and your LOI is complete, submit it to ACHF. In
some cases, your sponsor may take care of this submission. For more information about deadlines for submitting a LOI click here.
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10. The LOI asks me to have my project sponsored. What does that mean?
We
require that each LOI be sponsored to ensure submissions have been
reviewed, evaluated, budgeted and align with our key partners’
priorities. LOIs must be sponsored by both a senior administrator and,
where appropriate, academic/physician Head of your Division, Section,
Department, Clinic or Service.
Sponsorship will vary depending on the project focus:
Projects that will occur at the Alberta Children’s Hospital (ACH) or at other Alberta Health Services (AHS) locations.
Any
project that will take place at the ACH or other AHS sites, requires
space (meeting or clinical space, office, cubicle, etc.) at ACH or other
AHS sites, uses or relies on ACH/AHS staff or physicians (new or
existing) or impacts patients and families, requires sponsorship by ACH
and/or AHS Administration. AHS has developed guidelines to help you
understand how to seek ACH/AHS sponsorship for your project. Jennifer Sullivan, Project Manager, is available to help you with any questions
you have about ACH/AHS sponsorship. She can be reached at 403-955-2437
or jennifer.sullivan@albertahealthservices.ca
Projects that are research focused.
Most
child health research projects require sponsorship from the Alberta
Children’s Hospital Research Institute (ACHRI). ACHRI has developed
guidelines to help you understand how to seek ACHRI sponsorship for your
research project. Eszter Miksha, Program Manager is available to help you with any questions you have about
ACHRI sponsorship. She can be reached at 403-220-6184 or eszter.miksha@ucalgary.ca
Projects that are both clinical and research.
Many
projects are a combination of both clinical and research. These projects
most often require sponsorship of both ACHRI and ACH/AHS administration.
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11. What are the deadlines for submitting a LOI?
There
are usually four LOI deadlines per calendar year. Although subject to
change, the current deadlines for submitting a LOI are the 15th of
January, March, May and September.
Keep
in mind that you will need additional lead-time to secure necessary
sponsorship and and approvals before you submit your LOI to the Alberta
Children’s Hospital Foundation.
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12. How are grant decisions made?
STEP 1: LETTER OF INTENT (LOI) REVIEW COMMITTEE
All
requests for grant funding start with sponsorship and a LOI. The LOI
Review Committee reviews all LOIs and determines whether or not the
submission requires more information, clarification and details, and
whether or not the submission can proceed to the second phase of review.
This committee is made up of the ACHF President/CEO and senior
leadership from ACH (Senior Operating Officer & Head, Department of
Pediatrics) and ACHRI (Director) who also have positions on the Alberta
Children’s Hospital Foundation Board of Directors.
The LOI Review Committee meets quarterly and LOIs are required to be submitted 4 weeks in advance of the meeting date.
While the Committee makes its best effort to review all LOIs submitted,
in the event of a large volume of submissions, some LOIs may have to be
reviewed at the following meeting.
STEP 2: FUNDING PRIORITY COMMITTEE (FPC)
All
LOIs that have been recommended to proceed to FPC by the LOI Review
Committee are further reviewed and evaluated by FPC. FPC is a Standing
Committee of the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation Board of
Directors. FPC may request additional information, clarification and
details and/or may request a presentation. FPC has the authority to
recommend a grant for funding to the Board of Directors and the
authority to decline grant funding. FPC is also responsible to oversee
the progress of all approved projects through both annual project
reporting and in-person presentations.
STEP 3: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The
Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation Board of Directors has the
fiduciary responsibility to make decisions on grant funding. The Board
of Directors will review and consider recommendations made by FPC.
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13. How long will it take to get a decision about our LOI submission?
The
time it takes from review by the LOI Review Committee to approval by
the Board of Directors can range from 10 weeks to beyond, depending on a
project’s complexity and any additional information that may be needed
from you.
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14.
If there is a donor who wants to support our project, why do we still
need to complete a LOI and go through the grant review and evaluation
process?
We are
delighted to work with donors who have very specific wishes. However,
all major investments in child health are subject to the same review and
evaluation process to ensure that we:
 Understand and honour donor wishes;
Invest in the priorities of our key partners; and
Meet the fiduciary obligations of the Foundation’s Board of Directors to be stewards of donor investment.
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15. Once my project has been approved, what’s the next step?
Within
a few days of your approval you will be notified by email. We will then
begin the process of developing a funding agreement for your project
that will include:
Description of approved activities;
Approved budget;
Reporting requirements, including measurable outcomes and indicators of progress and success; and
Other conditions of funding.
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16.
Is there someone at Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation that I can
contact to help me or answer questions about the Child Health Grant
Program?
Yes! There are dedicated Alberta
Children’s Hospital Foundation staff that manage the Child Health Grant
Program and are happy to chat with you. If you have any questions about
the granting process or would like to discuss a project idea, contact:
Click here to return to the Child Health Granting page
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