Ottawa Hospital Foundation is a 3-star charity with average results reporting and reasonable overhead spending. It is financially transparent. With current reserves the charity can cover 11 years of annual grants. 

Founded in 1999, Ottawa Hospital Foundation (OHF) raises funds to support the Ottawa Hospital. Ottawa Hospital is affiliated with the University of Ottawa and spans three campuses: Ottawa Riverside, General, and Civic Hospital. Each year, the hospitals serve around 1.3 million people across Eastern Ontario. OHF also funds the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI) and University of Ottawa Heart Institute. In Newsweek's 2023 ranking of Canadian hospitals, Ottawa Hospital ranked 10th.  

In F2023, Ottawa Hospital Foundation granted $14.6m, as well as $3.0m in unpaid amounts from prior years. Its grants primarily went to three recipients: Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa Hospital, and University of Ottawa Heart Institute. 

Ottawa Hospital Research Institute received 56% of grants designated for capital and health research. The OHRI focuses on research in five main areas: cancer therapeutics, chronic disease, clinical epidemiology, neuroscience, and regenerative medicine. As of F2023, OHF reports that the institute has 2,339 researchers and 8,775 patients in clinical trials. 

Ottawa Hospital received 38% of grants for capital projects and patient care. OHF reports that in F2023, the hospital received 918,071 ambulatory care visits, 166,892 emergency visits, 80,230 surgical cases and 60,558 patient admissions. 

University of Ottawa Heart Institute received 4% of grants in F2023. The institute is currently based in Ottawa Civic Hospital and serves as both a patient care and teaching centre. It receives more than 211,133 patient visits and trains more than 280 medical and graduate students each year. 

University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Medicine received 2% of grants, while other hospital departments received less than 1% of grants in F2023. 

In F2022, Ottawa Hospital Foundation launched its Campaign to Create Tomorrow, a $500 million fundraising campaign which is donors' contributions to the $2.8 billion new hospital campus at Carling Avenue. This will be a new hospital with research buildings. The new site will to replace Ottawa Civic Hospital. The current Ottawa Civic Hospital will serve as a centre for rehabilitation and mental health support. As August 2023, the foundation reports that $294 million had been raised. The new medical campus will be 2.5 million square feet. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2024 and to be finished by 2028. In June 2022, an Ottawa Citizen article reports the fundraising goal is now $200 million higher at $700 million. OHF is required to pay 10% share of construction costs. It also needs to pay for all the equipment. The new hospital's $135 million parking garage will be financed with debt. The total fundraising goal includes support for "world-leading research". 

Ottawa Hospital Foundation is a Major 100 charity, one of Canada’s largest charities, with donations of $55.3m in F2023. Donations have increased by 53% since F2021. Administrative costs are 2% of revenues (less investment income) and fundraising costs are 14% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 16%. For every dollar donated to the charity, 84 cents go to the cause. This is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending. 

OHF has $199.9m in reserve funds. These are the charity’s cash and investments. Reserve funds have increased by 36% since F2021. The reserve funds include $75.7m in endowment funds, but the charity’s audited financial statements do not separate donor-endowed funds from internally endowed funds. As such, no deduction for endowments is made to funding reserve. Total funding reserves can cover annual grant costs for 11.4 years.  

The charity’s funding reserves contributed $2.5m in investment income in F2023, at an estimated rate of return of 2% (compared to a gain of $21.6m at a return of 20% in F2021). Over the last nine years, Ci estimates that OHF’s investment returns have averaged 5%. 

Ottawa Hospital Foundation discloses related party transactions. In F2023, it paid $14.6m in grants and $3.0m in unpaid balances from prior years to Ottawa Hospital and its affiliated departments. Ottawa Hospital helps to collect lottery revenue on behalf of OHF, which reported $947k in accounts receivable related to lotteries in F2023 ($879k in F2022). Ottawa Hospital makes some payment on behalf of the Foundation, which reported $722k in accounts payable to Ottawa Hospital ($588k in F2022).  

Charity Intelligence has sent this update to Ottawa Hospital Foundation for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming. 

Updated August 18, 2023 by Alessandra Castino.