Saint Elizabeth Community Enterprise is set to invest $4 million over two years to strengthen end-of-life care. This funding will expand access to residential hospice care and community-based services for patients and their families, as well as support both spiritual care and a selection of education initiatives.
As the Canadian population ages, the national need for hospice palliative care is steadily growing. The vast majority of Canadians—96 per cent—support end-of-life care, yet many continue to die without access to high quality, coordinated options.
“Across the country, there is a groundswell of passionate, committed people who are propelling this issue forward,” says Shirlee Sharkey, CEO of Saint Elizabeth. “By leveraging the unique strengths of our organization and working together with communities, we can escalate impact.”
Saint Elizabeth is currently partnering with a number of local hospices to support innovative models and increase patient access. The not-for-profit social enterprise is also collaborating with Hospice Palliative Care Ontario to increase the availability of online training for thousands of community-based volunteers.
“Death is something that inevitably touches us all,” says Nancy Lefebre, senior vice-president and the executive lead for Saint Elizabeth’s end of life strategy. “There is a huge opportunity to make the end of life journey more meaningful and accessible.”
