Canada-based paediatric hospitals including CHU Sainte-Justine and The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) have formed a partnership to advance paediatric medicine in the country.

Supported by a C$50m ($36.85m) investment from the Azrieli Foundation, the collaboration aims to advance Precision Child Health, a movement to boost health outcomes through the integration of genomics, clinical research data and new therapies.

Azrieli Foundation had previously offered $2.6m in seed financing to create necessary frameworks for governance, patient partners’ engagement, and legal agreements.

The additional $50m is aimed at speeding up this objective for customised paediatric healthcare.

Precision Child Health leverages information about children’s genes, biology, environment, and social determinants to enable more targeted diagnosis and treatment.

This approach is said to have implications for long-term health.

Azrieli Foundation chair and CEO Naomi Azrieli said: “Today marks a pivotal moment in Canadian healthcare history as we embark on a new era of delivering personalised, paediatric care.

“This partnership is based on excellence, visionary leadership, and courageous collaboration. Together, we will eliminate barriers and shift the paradigm in children's health.

“Philanthropy has been essential as a catalyst for innovation and progress, but our commitment goes beyond funding: we have taken a hands-on approach to foster a healthcare revolution with the extraordinary potential to improve lives.”

Together, SickKids and CHU Sainte-Jutsine are said to cater to 61% of the paediatric population in Canada.

Part of the Université de Montréal health network, the 484-bed CHU Sainte-Justine is a mother-child hospital. It has a workforce of 6,823, including healthcare professionals, researchers, and volunteers.

Established in 1875, SickKids combines patient care, research, and education to advance children's health. It is the Children's Health Alliance’s founding member.