About UB SOAR

Established in 2017, the UB SOAR Center is a collaboration between the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences’ Department of Surgery and UB’s School of Public Health and Health Professions. The Center currently serves as a hub for high-impact surgical outcomes research, multidisciplinary collaboration and clinical research training.

Driving High-Impact Surgical Research

UB SOAR leads research programs in:

  • Obesity and bariatric outcomes
  • Surgical oncology care delivery
  • Trauma outcomes
  • Transplant outcomes

These initiatives have generated nearly $4 million in research funding, along with numerous peer-reviewed publications and national conference presentations.

Training the Next Generation of Clinical Leaders

Developing clinician-researchers is central to our mission. Since 2017, UB SOAR has mentored 19 surgical trainees, including undergraduate and graduate students (MPH, MS, PhD), fellows, postdocs and junior faculty.

Trainees gain essential clinical research skills that prepare them for academic medicine, health care leadership and population health impact.

The MPH and MS programs provide trainees with the skills, knowledge and practical experience needed to succeed in:

  • Healthcare delivery systems
  • Public health organizations
  • Health insurance and managed care
  • Public and private healthcare industries

Graduates are prepared to:

  • Inform population health programs
  • Evaluate provider quality
  • Assess the impact of healthcare interventions
  • Measure organizational performance and patient outcomes

Supported by Strategic Partnerships

UB SOAR’s training activities are supported in part by the NYS Department of Health–funded Center Grant for Buffalo General Hospital through the Empire Clinical Research Investigator Program (ECRIP).

Our mission aligns closely with Kaleida Health’s commitment to delivering compassionate, high-value, quality care and advancing health across Western New York.

Multidisciplinary Expertise, Real-World Impact

UB SOAR draws on expertise across multiple UB schools and centers, including medicine, public health, informatics, engineering, social work and the arts and sciences.

Through graduate programs, flexible workshops, personalized research consultations and certificate programs tailored to specific interests, we equip trainees with the tools to improve health care delivery, evaluate outcomes and lead innovation in health services administration.