D'Youville College: KeyBank, in Partnership With the First Niagara Foundation, Donates $1 Million to Health Professions Hub

BUFFALO, New York, Nov. 25 (TNSMon) -- D'Youville College issued the following news:

KeyBank, in partnership with the First Niagara Foundation, is donating $1 million to support the Health Professions Hub at D'Youville.

The Health Professions Hub is a 58,751 square foot, state-of-the-art education, training, and community health center that will transform the future of healthcare education and innovation. Currently under construction at the corner of Connecticut and West Avenues in Buffalo, the facility will help fulfill D'Youville's mission of building healthy, thriving communities. The Hub will provide quality healthcare, community engagement and job opportunities to neighbors on Buffalo's West Side. It will play a pivotal role in analyzing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and its exacerbated hardships for low-income, minority families.

"We at KeyBank are committed to ensuring that all members of our community have access to quality healthcare and workforce development opportunities," said Gary Quenneville, KeyBank Regional Executive and Buffalo Market President. "The D'Youville Health Professions Hub will transform healthcare in Buffalo by providing much-needed clinical care for residents in the heart of our city's West Side, while also offering health professions education, training and degree programs in a state-of-the-art setting."

"KeyBank in partnership with the First Niagara Foundation is excited about the work taking place at the Health Professions Hub to prepare individuals for thriving futures, while creating opportunities to inspire lasting change. They are working to remove the barriers of racial inequity found in existing health systems and will serve as a national think tank on inclusive solutions to healthcare issues in low and moderate income communities," said Elizabeth Gurney, Executive Director of the KeyBank and First Niagara Foundations. "The Hub will have an incredible impact on our community by creating educational opportunities and certification programs for students that never existed before, creating pathways to good healthcare practices and economic success."

"We are profoundly grateful for this generous gift from KeyBank and the First Niagara Foundation toward our Health Professions Hub," said D'Youville President Lorrie A. Clemo, PhD. "This $1 million gift is a tremendous vote of confidence in our vision for building healthy, thriving communities in Western New York, particularly on Buffalo's West Side, and in providing the highest level of hands-on education and training for our health professions students and community members. KeyBank's deep commitment to Buffalo and their investment in promoting the health and well-being of our community are truly remarkable and we are forever grateful."

The Hub will feature:

* The Sisters Health Center at D'Youville - a primary care clinic operated by Catholic Health

* A full-service pharmacy

* A health and wellness center featuring OT, PT, and chiropractic services

* An interprofessional education and cutting-edge, full-service simulation center

* The Center for Health Equity and Innovation for health professions education and healthcare innovation

* The Pathways Program (funded by the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation) - providing trainings, certificate, and degree programs for social mobility of the local population

* A demonstration kitchen and cafe

* High-tech classrooms, meeting rooms and open work spaces

* A state-of-the-art event center and community engagement space

The Hub will focus on four key areas of need:

Community Health

The Hub sits upon a bedrock of research about community health right here in Buffalo. From diabetes to obesity to heart health, the Hub will tackle the real health disparities faced by our residents, supporting the whole person rather than just treating a disease.

Health Professions Education

One of the first in the nation, the Hub is akin to a teaching hospital where medical students learn and work alongside practitioners. Our teaching clinic and profound simulation technologies will not only benefit D'Youville students but will be broadcast out to locations throughout the state, especially in rural communities with higher poverty rates.

Health Equity and Innovation

The Center for Health Equity and Innovation on the third floor will serve as a conference venue and a think tank where leaders from throughout the world will incubate new ideas and solutions to address equity in social and health outcomes.

Workforce and Social Mobility

D'Youville is ranked in the top 100 in the nation - and the only ranked WNY university - for the social mobility of its graduates. Embedded in the Hub is a workforce pipeline program to improve quality of life for even the lowest income residents of our community.

Deemed critical to the region's healthcare infrastructure, New York State expedited construction on the Hub throughout COVID-19 and the project remains on track for phased opening in late 2020 and early 2021. The site will serve as another pandemic response center in the months to follow and will offer critical simulation experience in place of clinical requirements as hospitals and accreditors move to an outcomes-based simulation model.