The Arthritis Society

393 University Avenue, Suite 1700
Toronto, ON M5G 1E6
President & CEO: Trish Barbato
Board Chair: Duncan Mathieson

Charitable Reg. #:10807 1671 RR0003

STAR RATING

Ci's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics:

[Charity Rating: 3/5]

✔+

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity’s website.

A

RESULTS REPORTING

Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

n/r

DEMONSTRATED IMPACT

The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.

NEED FOR FUNDING

Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.

42%

CENTS TO THE CAUSE

For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 42 cents are available for programs.



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OVERVIEW

About The Arthritis Society:

Arthritis Society Canada is a 3-star rated charity. It has an above average results reporting grade of A. For every dollar donated, 42 cents are available to go towards the cause. Its reserve funds can cover 1.5 months of annual program costs.

Founded in 1948, Arthritis Society Canada (ASC) funds arthritis research, advocates for policy change, and provides support to improve health among those infected with arthritis. Arthritis is a collection of conditions affecting joints and other tissues. It causes pain, restricts mobility, and diminishes quality of life. Arthritis Society Canada reports that one in five Canadians live with arthritis. There is currently no cure. In fiscal 2024 (year ended March), ASC spent $18.5m on its programs. $6.8m (37%) of this was spent on Research and the remaining $11.8m was spent on the charity’s three other programs: Innovation, Advocacy, and Information and Support

Research: ASC’s Research focuses on pain relief, osteoarthritis (most common form of arthritis) and inflammatory arthritis. In F2024, ASC had 135 active research projects which included 79 grants, 38 training awards, 15 career developments, and three team grants. These research projects supported 377 researchers: 132 lead researchers, 121 additional trainees, and 124 qualified research personnel.

Innovation: The Innovation program funds social impact projects to uncover ideas to help people living with arthritis. In F2024, four entrepreneurs received $50,000 each. Arthritis Society Canada also awarded ten inaugural grants in F2024 to fund “high risk” ideas that have strong potential for “high reward”.

Advocacy: Arthritis Society advocates on behalf of Canadians affected by arthritis to drive policy and raise awareness. In F2024, ASC reached 83,079 people through Arthritis Talks, and 1,027 people through Arthritis Connections. ASC also impacted 34 policies, gave 89,900 pubic service announcements across Canada, and did 583 advocacy actions in F2024. 

Information and Support: The Information and Support website is a go-to source of evidence-based information, resources, and online tools. In F2024, the website had 1.79 million visitors and 105,634 newsletter subscribers. To support children with arthritis, ASC runs six camps nationwide that had 295 campers in F2024.

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Results and Impact

In 2023, Arthritis Society Canada released a report highlighting the problem of wait times arthritis patients face at the hospital. The charity reports 38% of Canadians did not receive their hip or knee joint replacement surgery within the recommended time of six months. The report provided recommendations to provincial and federal governments. The government included many of Arthritis Society’s recommendations in F2022. In March 2022, the federal government added an additional $2 billion to address the backlogs in arthritis surgeries. Nine provinces implemented the charity's recommended GLA:D education and exercise program. 70% of the patients reported significant improved function.

On its website, ASC published its top ten research advancements for 2023. ASC found an enzyme called Tryptase B which may contribute to osteoarthritis by interfering with the anti-inflammatory and joint-lubricating activities of a protein called PRG4. ASC also found out that small particles made from a type of molecule called polyphosphate can be used to effectively deliver drugs into the cartilage that pads the joints, which was typically a hard-to-reach area for drugs. To learn about the other advancements made in 2023-2024, go through the resources Charity Intelligence provides in the “Learn More” section at the bottom of the webpage. 

While Ci highlights these key results, they may not be a complete representation of Arthritis Society Canada’s results and impact. This charity is not yet rated on impact (n/r).

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Finances

At the time of this report, the charity’s F2024 T3010 filing with the CRA had not yet been released. Ci uses the T3010 filing to report investment income meaning that the current reported value for total revenues may be over or understated. 

In F2024, Arthritis Society Canada received $21.1m in donations. The charity also received $7.4m in government funding which makes up 26% of total revenues. Administrative costs are 13% of revenues (less investment income) and fundraising costs are 45% of donations. For every dollar donated, 42 cents are available to go towards the cause. This is outside of Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending. The charity has been outside the reasonable range since 2018. In F2024, ASC spent $18.5m on its programs which represents 66% of total revenues. 

In F2024, the charity had funding reserves of $4.7m of which $2.4m were donor endowed. Arthritis Society Canada has entered several operating lease commitments for office premises and office equipment. The reserve funds contribute towards the payments of these commitments. Excluding the donor-endowed funds, the charity’s F2024 reserves can cover program costs for one and a half months.

Based on the F2023 T3010 filing with the CRA, Arthritis Society Canada uses external fundraisers. ASC paid $714k to external fundraisers to raise $1.2m meaning the cost to raise a dollar via external fundraisers is 57 cents. 

Profile updated on July 16, 2024 by Abby Stout.

Financial Review


Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending March
202420232022
Administrative costs as % of revenues 13.2%12.5%10.8%
Fundraising costs as % of donations 44.5%39.6%44.9%
Total overhead spending 57.8%52.1%55.6%
Program cost coverage (%) 12.5%32.4%59.5%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $000s
202420232022
Donations 21,05721,10816,599
Government funding 7,3565,7436,521
Investment income 451,037100
Other income (450)122,379
Total revenues 28,00827,90125,599
Program costs 11,75210,6689,749
Grants 6,7686,7035,198
Administrative costs 3,7023,3602,754
Fundraising costs 9,3808,3597,444
Total spending 31,60229,09025,146
Cash flow from operations (3,594)(1,189)453
Capital spending 741521600
Funding reserves 4,6847,97111,192

Note: DEFERRED DONATIONS: To report on a cash-basis, Ci adjusts for deferred contributions. This affected total revenues by ($2.7m) in F2024, ($1.1m) in F2023, and $525k in F2022. Ci removed these deferred contributions from Other Revenue because it was unclear if they were donations or governmental funding. ENDOWMENT CONTRIBUTIONS: Ci adjusted for endowment contributions impacting total revenues by ($197) in F2024, $13k in F2023, and $4k in F2022. RESEARCH AWARDS PAYABLE: Ci adjusted for research awards payable affecting grants by $210k in F2024, $466k in F2023, and ($48k) in F2022. AMORTIZATION: ASC did not include amortization on its income statement. Ci removed amortization from program, administrative, and fundraising costs on a pro-rata basis.

Salary Information

Full-time staff: 144

Avg. compensation: $74,580

Top 10 staff salary range:

$350k +
0
$300k - $350k
1
$250k - $300k
0
$200k - $250k
3
$160k - $200k
0
$120k - $160k
2
$80k - $120k
4
$40k - $80k
0
< $40k
0

Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2023

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Comments & Contact

Comments added by the Charity:

Charity Contact

Website: www.arthritis.ca
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: 416.979.7228 

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Charitable Registration Number: 80340 7956 RR0001