HANCI recipient of KeyBank/First Niagara Foundation grant

The Health Association of Niagara County Inc. – better known as HANCI – announced Tuesday it is the recipient of a $30,000 grant award from KeyBank, in partnership with the First Niagara Foundation. The grant was awarded to the nonprofit to implement a frontline worker education and care coordination/telehealth program.

“During this nationwide pandemic, our agency has stepped up our efforts to serve the community and expand our services,” said John W. Kinner, president and CEO of HANCI. “COVID-19 has brought about unique challenges to health care delivery, especially to the chronically ill elderly, that we have not seen in the almost 94 years we have been serving the Niagara County community. We have been challenged with finding ways to adapt and grow, and telehealth will be a part of that plan thanks to this grant.”

Kinner continued, “On behalf of our board of directors, our staff and patients, I want to sincerely thank KeyBank, in partnership with the First Niagara Foundation, along with their executive director, Elizabeth Gurney, for their extremely generous support of our agency. Because of their support, HANCI will be able to provide better care and services to the people of Niagara who are depending on us now more than ever.”

A press release said, “Telehealth was widely used during the pandemic to expand access to essential health services. It is both patient-centered and conducive to self-quarantine, and can allow physicians and patients to communicate 24/7, without exposing staff and patients to contagions. Further, telemedicine can provide for an important evaluation step before patients visit a hospital or clinic, and can provide quick access to specialist who are not immediately available in person.”

HANCI has immediate plans to utilize this funding by upgrading workforce technology as well as implementing telehealth services for the agency’s most at-risk patients.