This year, Enfant Soleil is donating more than $9.2 million in Montréal to improve the care and overall health of children in the area. It supports over a hundred healthcare institutions across the province, in addition to giving vital support to the four major pediatric centres, which provide specialized and superspecialized care to all children who need it.
Discover several projects that will make our little sunshines glow with health.
Montreal Children’s Hospital (the Children’s)
As a specialized pediatric centre, each year the Montreal Children’s Hospital welcomes young patients from across the province in need of specialized care. As such, it has received significant support from Enfant Soleil since 1989. It is donating more than $4.2 million to the Children’s this year, another big step toward helping children and adolescents glow with health.
This contribution will make it possible for several projects to be carried out, such as the creation of the Colorectal Centre of Excellence. For many children with complex colorectal diseases or malformations, each day brings new challenges. A simple school outing or a sleepover can quickly become a source of anxiety. Beyond medical issues, these difficulties affect their social integration, self-esteem and overall well-being. In addition to being the first in Quebec to offer complex digestive and pelvic reconstructive surgery, this specialized healthcare centre has a comprehensive intestinal rehabilitation program. It will truly change the daily lives of these courageous children and their families.
The funding allocated this year will also contribute to the advancement of the Early Detection Program for Childhood Cancers, a crucial project for the future of young patients and their families. For one in 10 children with cancer, the disease is linked to a genetic predisposition. Thanks to this program, these risks can be identified earlier, and the disease can be detected in its early stages. A personalized care plan can then quickly be put in place, letting each child focus on their future, surrounded by their family and a medical team dedicated to their health and well-being.
CHU Sainte-Justine
The historic contribution of over $4.2 million allocated this year to this specialized pediatric centre, which cares for children from all over Quebec, will have a tangible impact across all its areas of expertise.
Improvements to the Centre ambulatoire Enfant Soleil will continue, helping to transform the hospital experience for thousands of children and families from all over Quebec. Part of the funding will be used to improve the nephrology clinics, modernizing them and consolidating the services they offer. With kidney diseases on the rise in children, it is essential to take action to offer them quick and adapted care that prevents serious complications, such as cardiovascular or neurological issues, or chronic pain. These new spaces will allow nearly 6,700 young patients each year to receive treatment in a more thoughtfully designed, more welcoming environment, where every detail aims to improve their daily lives and those of their families.
Hôpital Notre-Dame
The current outpatient pediatric clinic, originally designed for adults, is not well suited to the needs of the 7,000 or so children and adolescents currently being treated there in 2024-2025 for a variety of physical, psychological and social issues. This number has been rising steadily since the clinic's creation.
The hospital will receive $500,000 over two years to renovate and modernize the clinic and increase its capacity. The new facilities will include eight examination rooms and a welcoming, more comfortable waiting area for children and their families. Part of this funding will also go toward acquiring adapted equipment essential to children’s well-being, such as pediatric stretchers, vital sign monitors and treatment tables.
This project will significantly increase the clinic’s capacity while helping alleviate pressure on the region’s major pediatric hospitals. Even more families will be able to get the help they need quickly! It will change the lives of many children by providing them with more accessible care, close to home, in an environment designed for their well-being.
Other projects supported in the area
Laryngoscope
Adapted to the size of children, this device enables gentler, faster and safer intubation when every second counts.
3 vital sign monitors
These devices allow real-time monitoring of children’s vital signs without requiring manipulation or intervention, which reduces stress and ensures more responsive and appropriate care.
Renovation of the secondary pediatric psychiatric emergency department
Relocating the secondary child psychiatric emergency department close to the other critical care units will optimize the care of young patients. The new consultation offices and renovated space will help better manage crisis situations while respecting the dignity and confidentiality of young patients, and creating a safer environment adapted to their needs.
Interactive mural for the language impairment therapy room
This interactive mural will offer children with communication or language difficulties a fun and stimulating way to develop their social, motor and cognitive skills, facilitating their integration into daycare or school.
Interactive mural for the visual impairment therapy room
Over 200 children with visual impairments will benefit from this interactive mural, designed to help them develop their tactile skills and improve their independence and understanding of the world around them.
Pressure mapping system for the positioning and mobility clinic
Using pressure sensors placed on the seat and backrest, this system precisely adjusts children’s mobility equipment. It helps optimize the comfort and mobility of children with motor disabilities, improving their quality of life.
Hearing screening device
As part of an assessment process for young children with developmental delays, this device allows quick and painless hearing screening.
Multisensory mobile cart
This device provides a sensory experience that is both soothing and stimulating for children with special needs, and contributes to the development of their communication, social and cognitive skills during their stay.
Hearing diagnostic device
This device adapts the hearing exam to the specific needs of certain children for whom conventional assessment methods are less effective, such as those with intellectual disabilities or autism spectrum disorder, facilitating a quick and accurate diagnosis.
Newborn mannequins
Used to train medical teams, these mannequins will simulate critical resuscitation scenarios. Newborn babies will benefit from quick interventions tailored to their needs.
Equipment for the breastfeeding clinic
The acquisition of these small devices will facilitate breastfeeding, support mothers and help with follow-up care for newborns.
Projects financed by the Sport and Sustainable Health Fund (SSHF)
The SSHF aims to promote and support healthy lifestyle habits in children through sport, physical activity and healthy eating, as well as cultivating emotional and mental well-being. This fund will help eight organizations in the region carry out their projects for a total of $39,900.
- Miriam Foundation
- Fondation des jeunes de la DPJ
- La Dauphinelle
- Douglas Mental Health University Institute
- Maison Bleue
- CPE La Porte Ouverte
- Côte-des-Neiges Black Community Association
- CRJDA Harmony
Rose Lavoie, Enfant Soleil of Montréal
She and her family help the cause shine in their region.
Even before Rose was born, there were concerns about her health. Ultrasounds revealed that the size of her head was slightly disproporionate, but not alarmingly so. When she was born, tests were nonetheless conducted at Sainte-Justine, as well as genetic testing. At four months, her strabismus and difficulty holding up her head confirmed her parents’ worries. After long months of waiting and uncertainty, a diagnosis was finally made. Rose has a rare genetic syndrome (CTNNB1) that affects her motor and cognitive development.
Although she faces significant challenges, Rose learned to walk at 21 months with the help of specially adapted orthoses, and continues to make progress every day, driven by unwavering determination. With physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, osteopathy, ophthalmology, neurology, physiatry, ENT and other appointments, the family has a complicated daily life, but her parents remain optimistic. Rose is a true ray of sunshine, all smiles and resilience, and every little victory is a huge achievement for her and her family.