Murphy family announces $4M donation to ‘transform’ palliative care in Nova Scotia

The QEII Foundation announced that it has received a $4-million donation that will have a direct impact on palliative care in Nova Scotia.

In an announcement on Tuesday, the foundation said three-quarters of the donation from the Murphy family — on behalf of the J&W Murphy Foundation — will be “the catalyst in creating an Endowed Chair in Palliative Care at the QEII Health Sciences Centre.”

The other $1 million will go towards Hospice Halifax, the province’s hospice residence.

“On behalf of all Nova Scotians, we’re incredibly thankful to the J&W Murphy Foundation and entire Murphy family for their visionary commitment to transform palliative care in our region,” said Bill Bean, president and CEO at the QEII Foundation, in a statement.

“As catalysts for change, their generosity will elevate care and research in Atlantic Canada and play a pivotal role in shaping our province’s dialogue around palliative care.”

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The Murphy family says it’s a deeply personal cause and they have first-hand experience with the current state of palliative care in the province.

They feel conversations about palliative care need to begin far earlier.

“It has to be as easy to have those conversations with your loved ones and health-care teams as it is to talk about your flu shot,” Lisa Murphy of the J&W Murphy Foundation told the QEII Foundation.

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The QEII Foundation says it is currently on a $4-million fundraising campaign — of which the J & W Murphy Foundation has donated $3 million — to complete funding for the Endowed Chair in Palliative Care.

“At its heart, the Endowed Chair in Palliative Care will be dedicated to leading palliative care research at the QEII and, ultimately, translating evidence-based findings into best practices, policies and training that will be adopted here at home — and both nationally and internationally,” the QEII Foundation’s announcement reads.

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The Murphy family hopes that in addition to igniting palliative care research, their gift will help shatter some of the stigma surrounding palliative care and its importance in helping individuals at any point in their illness.