Thomas J. Quatroche Jr., PHD President and Chief Executive Officer, ECMC

As an anchor institution in Buffalo’s historic East Side community, ECMC has a
long history of providing high quality healthcare delivered with compassion. We are proud of the role ECMC has played throughout our city’s and region’s history and we are particularly gratified to be a part of the renaissance that is transforming our community.

As Western New York’s only Adult Trauma Center, including 573 inpatient beds, 390 long-term care beds and over 3,800 employees, ECMC not only serves the healthcare needs of our region, but our employees – that is, our ECMC Family – reflect the patients we serve. We are proud that over 700 of our caregivers are residents of the East Side and in 2018, 285 East Side residents from the 14215 zip code (that encompasses our health campus) were hired, representing the largest hiring from any Western New York zip code in 2018. But even with that success we can and will do better.

To that end, in May 2018 ECMC created our new Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, led by Cynthia R. Bass MBA, CDM. Under Cindy’s leadership, ECMC’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and she has developed a strategic plan that prioritizes and communicates the importance of diversity in our community-based, safety net hospital setting; serves as a resource to incorporate diversity and inclusion into ECMC practices, programs, policies and procedures; collaborates with all levels of management and executive leadership to develop diversity and inclusion competencies; and represents ECMC at community events.

Whether developing ways to diversify our workforce or our participation in the formation and development of the new Buffalo Center for African American Health Equity or the future redevelopment of the long vacant 17-acre Kensington Heights property contiguous to our health campus, we are committed to strengthening, reinforcing and sustaining a more inclusive and representative workplace and community, based on racial and ethnic equity and inclusion, that will offer greater opportunity and advancement for all.

With an over 100-year presence on Grider Street in Buffalo’s East Side, we are excited about the future of ECMC and we are even more enthusiastic about the future of our immediate neighborhood and community we call home.

Cindy Bass, MBA
CDM Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Imagine a world without cultural diversity in healthcare. We would lose the ability to provide care to patients with diverse values, beliefs, and behaviors, including the tailoring of healthcare delivery to meet patients’ social, cultural, and linguistic needs. We, as an organization, are called on to strive to honor our diverse workforce and the patient population it serves, and to create an environment where all can learn from and celebrate the differences that define and bind us.

Without the ability to learn about each other, to acknowledge and to celebrate our differences, important conversations would never happen, and social conditions would never improve. A world without diversity is one in which humanity suffers. We need diversity in order to learn, thrive, and grow.

At the core of diversity are all of the characteristics that serve to differentiate ourselves from others: personalities, gender, age, national and ethnic origin, disability, sexual orientation, ability status, religion, and cognitive ability, among other facets of distinction between individuals. However, diversity is so much more than what separates us. These facets of differentiation that diversity provides bring varied perspectives, work experiences, life styles and cultures—all elements of a work environment that are necessary for innovation and growth at ECMCC.

A world without diversity is a world without engagement, without the human touch of compassion, and thankfully, one we don’t have to imagine. Together, we can touch the life of every patient to create a rich tapestry of true care.