Europe’s largest university hospital system is bringing medical innovation from Paris to the rest of the world. Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), the public hospital system serving the Parisian region, is made up of nearly 40 hospitals and accounts for 20% of healthcare in France.
But its model extends its impact on healthcare far beyond France by combining patient care with a major role in medical research, teaching, and training, working closely with universities like Sorbonne Université and Université Paris Cité.
Fondation AP-HP was created in 2016 as the philanthropic partner that helps accelerate this work, mobilizing the generosity of individuals, companies, and foundations to channel support where it can have the greatest impact.
“The Foundation serves to leverage or accelerate projects that would not happen, or would proceed much more slowly, without the public’s generosity,” explains Gwénolée Abalain, Director of Fondation AP-HP.
Today, Fondation AP-HP focuses on three strategic priorities: advancing medical innovation and research, improving the patient experience, and supporting healthcare professionals.
Two Sides of Innovation: Medical Research and Patient Care
AP-HP is home to 20 of the world’s most-cited clinicians, produces one-third of France’s medical research publications, and maintains Europe’s largest AI-enabled health database dedicated to research. Fondation AP-HP helps bridge scientific discovery and care by supporting research that can directly improve patient outcomes.
One example is the Clinical Research Chair in Environmental Health, established in March 2026 to better understand how environmental exposures contribute to chronic disease by investigating topics including endocrine disruptors and infertility, environmental pollutants and the chemoresistance in endometrial cancer, and the effects of food additives on breast cancer.
“Within the framework of this Chair, patient care and research go hand in hand. AP-HP physicians can not only tackle a topic in fundamental research and test it in clinical settings, but also start with an unexplained diagnosis in patients, investigate their environment, and explore avenues for research,” explains Gwénolée Abalain.
That same philosophy also guides AP-HP’s ambitious strategy for advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs), one of the fastest-evolving fields in modern medicine.
These therapies use genes, tissues, or cells to target the molecular cause of a disease, offering potential solutions for diseases that were previously considered incurable. In the case of cancer, for example, the goal is to treat patients not with an inert chemical pill but with cells engineered from the patient’s own immune cells (CAR-T cells): lymphocytes are harvested, genetically reprogrammed to target the tumor, and then reinfused into the patient.
Already a pioneer in gene therapy, AP-HP aims to develop five new advanced therapies by 2030. Through the Foundation, philanthropic support is helping provide the resources needed to transform AP-HP hospitals into centers capable of producing these next-generation biotherapies.
Transforming Treatment
Improving patient care also means giving physicians access to the most advanced treatments available. One current priority is equipping AP-HP hospitals with the Epione interventional radiology robot, enabling minimally invasive treatment for tumors that are difficult to access.
Equipping AP-HP physicians with the Epione will be a game-changer for patients affected by these tumors. Its radio-guided technology enables the removal of tumors that are very difficult to access in the abdomen, chest, joints, muscles, and tendons. Its imaging and tracking tools detect respiratory movements and compensate for them, making the procedure possible.
With only three Epione robots currently available in France, access to this pioneering technology will allow more patients to benefit from earlier, less invasive treatment, improving both outcomes and quality of life.
Pioneering Better Healthcare Approaches at AP-HP
The Foundation recognizes that innovation must be fostered at many levels, including on the front lines. Through its Coup de Pouce grants, it empowers teams to develop innovative solutions to clinical, research, and organizational challenges as they see them emerge.
In 2025, the first call for projects was launched with a budget of €1.5 million, with 77% of selected initiatives aimed at improving care for patients and their families, 15% at improving quality of life at work for healthcare providers, and 8% for incorporating sustainable development initiatives.
The Foundation has also demonstrated how strategic philanthropy can launch entirely new models of innovation. Created in response to critical equipment shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic, PRIM3D began as an emergency 3D-printing initiative. Today, it has expanded to develop customized anatomical models that help surgeons prepare for complex procedures, ultra-realistic training simulators for healthcare professionals, patient education tools, and replacement parts that extend the life of costly medical equipment while reducing waste.
Thanks to donor support, Fondation AP-HP played a decisive role by providing the seed funding that launched the project. Researchers and industry partners also benefit through collaborations, including an American medical school that uses its 3D-printed ear prototypes for surgical training.
Why International Philanthropy Matters
As medicine continues to evolve and healthcare challenges increasingly transcend borders, philanthropy will remain an essential catalyst, helping AP-HP bring innovative treatments to patients faster.
AP-HP’s excellence in both patient care and innovative medical research has drawn the support of international donors, including those in the U.S. “There are donors who have been treated at our hospitals during a stay in France, or who have been treated by one of our internationally renowned professors or physicians for a specific condition, and who wish to give back to the AP-HP following that experience,” shares Gwénolée Abalain. “We also have philanthropists committed to a specific health issue, either personally or through their own foundations, who support the cutting-edge care and research conducted at the AP-HP.”
With Friends of Fondation de France, American donors can support Fondation AP-HP through tax-deductible donations in the U.S., enabling them to help drive discoveries that benefit patients around the world.
These projects include the launch of the Institute of the Child’s Brain, focused on the neurodevelopment of children and teenagers to improve care pathways for children and families. The future building will be the first European place to host fundamental and clinical researchers, doctors, startups, and families in one place.
Donors can also help fund existing and new Research Chairs, including the Chair on Environmental Health, as well as the development of Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMPs). Promising projects are ongoing for treatments for sickle cell disease, childhood leukemia, and spina bifida.
Other promising projects include the launch of a ‘Transplants Nursery’ to help with shortages, improve quality, and reduce transplant rejections.
Looking Ahead
Looking to the future, Fondation AP-HP hopes to broaden both the scale of its funding and the range of initiatives it supports.
Building on the success of its first Coup de Pouce call for proposals, Fondation AP-HP is expanding its support for innovative ideas emerging across its hospital network, giving frontline teams the resources to turn promising ideas into reality.
“We would like to expand our calls for proposals in the coming years, both in terms of funding and the topics we support, thanks to our community of donors, foundations, and committed companies,” shares Gwénolée Abalain.
To learn more about Fondation AP-HP and how to support their work, visit their page here.
