The Health Care Foundation of the Finger Lakes, Inc. (the Foundation) is an education and research foundation committed to improving the quality of care for elderly and disabled persons residing in long-term care settings.  The Foundation was created in 2007.

Health care professionals and organizations benefit from Foundation activities through implementation of programs funded by grants, charitable contributions, and fundraising.  The Foundation seeks to provide informational and professional growth opportunities as well as educational and training programs for nurses, administrative staff, therapists, and any other disciplines or services that add to the routines and lives of residents in skilled nursing, rehabilitative, memory care, or other adult care setting.

The Foundation has a broad range of interest areas related to the field of long-term care including but not limited to: clinical research, quality improvement, workforce development, health information and technology, long-term care facilities/infrastructure, health care education, nurse education, and utilizing arts in health care.

In 2007 a group for long term care administrators in the upstate New York region recognized the fact that there were very few resources for the support of providers and professionals engaged in older adult care in the region, aside from membership in Statewide and National trade organizations. In addition, this group also identified a disconnect in many areas of operations and education even for those businesses that did belong to such trade associations. Membership in these types of trade organizations did not always translate into the support services needed locally because trade associations are generally segregated based on corporate sponsorship as well as targeted to providers of specific levels of care. In addition the geographically broad based membership and diverse issues that are necessarily the primary focus of these large state and national associations prohibit many local initiatives.

It was from the sense of need described above that the Health Care Foundation of the Finger Lakes was born. The vision of the Foundation’s organizers is to provide a range of support services and programs for providers and organizations regardless of their trade association membership, specific level of older adult services or corporate sponsorship.

The Health Care Foundation of the Finger Lakes is one of the only charitable foundations in the upstate thirteen county area that provides services targeted to those that care for the geriatric, frail and disabled living in congregate settings.