Every day, more Albertans are living with cardiovascular disease, yet care remains fragmented, with no province-wide plan to prevent, detect, or manage it effectively.
That’s about to change.
The University Hospital Foundation, in partnership with Primary Care Alberta and Acute Care Alberta, is launching Caring for Our Hearts — a comprehensive cardiac strategy. This three-year initiative (2025–2027) will unite experts across research, disease prevention, primary care, acute care and rehabilitative medicine to build a seamless, patient-centred approach to heart health.
“What if we could bring heart disease under control or prevent it altogether?” says Dr. Jodi L. Abbott, President & CEO of the University Hospital Foundation. “By bringing together experts from across Alberta’s health and wellness ecosystem, we can create a unified, evidence-based approach to cardiac health that helps every Albertan live a longer, healthier life.”
Key priorities include:
As catalyst and connector, the University Hospital Foundation will convene a steering coalition of experts and patient advocates to guide the development of the strategy. The Foundation will also work with public and private partners to secure investment, evaluate outcomes and accelerate the rollout of new initiatives.
“This initiative is exactly the kind of collaboration we need to strengthen heart health across Alberta,” says Adriana LaGrange, Minister of Primary and Preventative Health Services. “When prevention, early detection, and advanced care work hand in hand, we can help more Albertans avoid heart disease before it starts, and make sure those who need care get it quickly and close to home.”
Matt Jones, Minister of Hospital and Surgical Health Services says, “Through Caring for Our Hearts, we are strengthening acute care across Alberta, connecting hospitals and specialists to ensure patients receive timely, seamless, and life-saving heart care from diagnosis to treatment.”
“We thank the Government of Alberta for their collaboration on this initiative,” says Dr. Abbott. “We’ve seen what’s possible when we take a coordinated, province-wide approach to health challenges like cancer. It’s time to apply that same vision and urgency to heart health.”
For decades, the University Hospital Foundation and its donors have been at the forefront of advancing cardiac care, helping raise one in every four dollars it took to build the Mazankowski Alberta Heart Institute, and continuing to fund the technology, talent and research that make it one of North America’s leading cardiac centres.
“Improving cardiac care and prevention is a priority for Acute Care Alberta and is too important for any one organization to tackle alone,” said David Diamond, Interim CEO, Acute Care Alberta. “Through this partnership, we’re combining our strengths to create a more connected, patient-centered approach that will lead to better outcomes and a healthier future for Albertans.”
“Alberta is a leader in treating cardiovascular disease,” adds Kim Simmonds, CEO, Primary Care Alberta. “Primary Care Alberta looks forward to partnering with the University Hospital Foundation to apply the same spirit of innovation to upstream, preventative care — supporting Albertans to live healthier lives and helping clinicians identify cardiac issues earlier.”
Now, Caring for Our Hearts will take that legacy further by leveraging Alberta’s strengths in cardiac research, innovation and clinical excellence to build a healthier future for all.
