What’s Coming

While the initial program winds up this year, the incredible support for, interest in, and contributions of this program will continue. Recognizing the importance of this work, the RNFOO Board has committed to adding Nursing Innovation Grants to the Foundation’s mandate. Seed money has been designated by the Board, but there is need for fundraising to continue in order for the program to be sustained. For every 50 people who commit to donating $20 per month to support nursing innovation, the Board will be able to designate $10,000 to the new grant program.

Background

The Nurse Innovator Award (NIA) was conceived by the Honorary Life Members of the Registered Nurses’ Foundation of Ontario to design and build a mechanism to enable, encourage, support and celebrate nursing innovation. The initial fundraising campaign recruited 124 Founding Donors, each of whom have pledged $2,500 over five years. In addition, 11 Friends and Supporters have donated to the NIA. The awards are presented at a reception in November each year.

The story of the beginning of the NIA can be read in the March 2020 Longwoods Blog Nurse Innovator Award: Enabling Nursing Creativity & Innovation. A report on the program was presented at the ICN conference in July 2023. And we’re not finished telling the story yet!

Winners

Since 2019, the inaugural year, the NIA Committee has distributed $404,000+ to innovative and entrepreneurial nurses in Ontario. Details about the NIA winners can be found through the NIA link in the Awards dropdown Menu, and clicking on the years that appear in the right sidebar.
The projects supported through the NIA have dealt with Pediatrics to Long Term Care, covered sites from Ottawa in the east, Sudbury in the north, and Cambridge in the south-west, and included all nursing designations.

NIA Founding Donors

We are grateful for these NIA Founding Donors

NIA Friends & Supporters

Anke and Kirk Simpson
BMO FINANCIAL
Connie Clerici
Daphne Cockwell School of Nursing (TMU)
LeGresley Family Foundation
F.K. Morrow Foundation
National Bank/Stephen Ford
Nicol Family Foundation
ONA
WeRPN (RPNAO)
Westpark Health Care Centre

Endorsements

The nurses approached to fund this award have offered wholehearted support along with their pledges and donations.  Here are just a few of the comments received from them:

I am honoured and thrilled to support those nurses driving innovation

SB

I am very pleased to support this focus on innovation. Nurses have been innovative their whole careers and we need to support more formal approaches

JB

What a great idea… let’s celebrate our creativity!

CS

Looking forward to amplifying the voice of nursing in the transformation of health.

MS

Keep up the great work to support amazing nurses!

RF