"Working in alliance with communities to build and strengthen capacity for individuals and communities"

Person-Centered Advocacy Team (PCAT) is a unique integrated community-university partnership program that combines real-world experience in the healthcare facility and public health organizations for college students while adding value to the professional healthcare staff members and public health educators.  The experiential component is combined with structured learning and growth for everyone involved.  Students gain hands-on professional experience in the field of patient/people-centered care, medicine, and public health while having space and tools to critically reflect on the experience to develop their philosophy of health, healthcare, or medicine.  

The program believes in working in alliance with communities to build and strengthen the capacity of individuals and communities.  It acknowledges and values that community members and organizational partners are the experts in the area of public health and healthcare.   This then provides a unique experiential learning opportunity for students' personal, professional, intellectual interests, and development.  In return, students provide services that contribute to the partnering organizations in meaningful ways.    

PCAT students volunteer at one of the partnering off-campus organizations that provide them with direct contact with patients, members of public health organizations, professional medical staff, and public health educators at the Cancer Resource Center of the Finger Lakes, and the Mental Health Association of Tompkins County.   

Program Goals:

• Strengthen university campus and off-campus community relations through collaboration
• Add values to all collaborators’ existing mission
• Promote people-centered approach in public health and healthcare system

Program Objectives: 

• Introduce PCAT students to collaborative and collective leadership by raising awareness of self, leadership capacity, and ability to work in teams and larger community
• Contribute to PCAT students’ level of exposure to the healthcare and community health settings
• Value professional settings and practitioners as part of the higher education’s learning experience

Program Requirements: 

• commit to a minimum of 2-3 hours shift per week at selected organization
• attend bi-weekly debriefing, reflective sessions

“We do not learn from experience... we learn from reflecting on experience.”
― John Dewey

Cancer Resource Center of the Finger Lakes

• Volunteer for one shift, 2 hours per week in the Cancer Resource Center Room in the Cayuga Medical Center 
• attend bi-weekly reflective session
• Arrange one's own transportation to get to Cayuga Medical Center for the shift
• Maintain professionalism and respect in the work place and workshop discussion

Mental Health Association in Tompkins County

• Volunteer for 1 shift (2.5 hours) per week in the Drop-In Center, Mental Health Association of Tompkins County
• attend bi-weekly reflective session
• Arrange one's own transportation to get to the Mental Health Association of Tompkins County for the shift
• Maintain professionalism and respect in the work place and workshop discussion