A Life of Compassion and Vision

Dr. Balfour M. Mount, a Canadian physician, surgeon and academic, widely considered as the father of palliative care, passed away on 25 September 2025, in the palliative care unit of the very hospital he helped build, the Royal Victoria Hospital of the McGill University Health Centre.

Dr. M R Rajagopal, Chairman Emeritus, Pallium India, writes:
“I had always wanted to meet this great man. When I was visiting Montreal, Canada, I heard that Mike Hill and Sue Collins of Moonshine agencies had an appointment with him for a video shoot. They allowed me to tag along, and I could have the good fortune to meet him. He had a tracheostomy at that time and had to speak in sync with each exhalation. What a great man! So humble; so knowledgeable; such a visionary. Thank you, Dr Balfour Mount, for all that you did for all of us.”