PA-C & Deputy CEO, Community Care of West Virginia
Photo by Christopher Sigley.
By Emily Pellham
Compassion, resiliency, tremendous leadership and a tenacious work ethic have driven Trish Collett throughout the entirety of her education and continuing career. Collett currently serves as a PA-C and deputy CEO at Community Care of West Virginia (CCWV).
Collett’s inner drive and ambition started when she was young, watching her family and the community around her.
“I’m a first-generation college graduate in my family,” says Collett. “Growing up in West Virginia, my father was a coal miner and my mother a stay-at-home caregiver. At an early age, watching my family struggle, especially when the coal mines were on strike or closed, I knew I wanted a better life, and education was the key.”
Collett followed her dream and graduated from Alderson Broaddus University in 1994 with a bachelor’s in medical science. Starting her career in the fast-paced environment of emergency medicine, Collett gained a variety of skills she would later use in her transition to rural community medicine.
“Working in rural West Virginia, I have utilized skills developed in emergency medicine for acute situations since many of CCWV’s service communities are close to an hour away from the nearest hospital. I’ve reached the point in my career where I’m taking care of the children of patients that were children when I began practicing,” Collett says.
In this way, Collett has been able to practice medicine for many years and in a variety of roles. She started as a staff medical provider, moving to director of medical operations then to chief operations officer and most recently becoming deputy CEO. Even with the advancements in her career, Collett still sees patients in the clinic as she loves providing a personal level of care.
Within her various roles at CCWV, Collett has made an impact throughout her remarkable career. In the past 10 years, she has helped to grow school-based health centers from four centers to 50—making CCWV the largest provider of school-based health centers in the state. Moreover, Collett played a key role in establishing five new walk-in acute care clinics that are open 361 days per year to expand after-hours access to care. She also led the effort in administering 52,572 COVID-19 vaccines during the height of the pandemic.
Understanding the critical need for behavioral health services, Collett additionally worked to establish a more substantial integrated behavioral health program that included two addiction recovery programs. Currently, Collett is working with a local college to launch a master’s in counseling program due to the high need for behavioral health services in the community.
“I’m committed to helping our school systems and community through our behavioral health services, which include substance use disorder treatment for the healing of our current generation and the success of our future generations. Increasing the number of qualified professionals is a step toward meeting those needs,” says Collett.
Collett doesn’t stop at serving her community through health care but continues to be involved in the community through other avenues as well. Collett has spent the last 20 years volunteering at 4-H summer camps and served as treasurer for the 4-H Foundation Board for Randolph County. She currently serves as a board member for Randolph County Parks and Recreation, overseeing the 4-H camp, Camp Pioneer. Other organizations that Collett has worked with include the Pallottine Foundation of Buckhannon, Think Kids and The Salvation Army.
Collett enjoys partnering with these organizations because it allows her to have an impact on the next generation of leaders.
“The next generation is our future, and for some, their background—whether it’s their home situation, learning disabilities or support system—may affect their future success. Mentoring, to me, is a way of showing kids that hard work and dedication make anything and everything, possible,” says Collett.
Through mentoring kids and caring for the needs of every one of her patients, Collett connects to the community of West Virginia.
“I was born and raised in rural West Virginia, and I never had the desire to leave. I have always seen the natural beauty of our state and people and the commitment to hard work and community,” Collett says. “Growing up witnessing this firsthand, I understand our culture and communities and want to help make that positive difference with my team for future generations.”
Community Care of West Virginia
Community Care of West Virginia (CCWV) is a Federally Qualified Health Center with various locations across West Virginia. CCWV has 16 community health center locations, six 340B pharmacies, 50 school-based health sites and one dental office.
CCWV is a leading provider of health care with a team of professionals that truly care about chronic disease management and quality care outcomes.
Its mission is to help communities live the healthiest lives possible by meeting both the immediate and long-term health care needs of every patient.
“Community Care of West Virginia has always utilized data to make informed decisions. Daily review of the financial, quality, productivity and patient data helps determine what Community Care services need for expansion and innovation to provide the best access for our communities,” says Patricia Collett, deputy CEO for CCWV.
Continuous analysis and inspection of care are what allows CCWV to provide accessible, high-quality, culturally appropriate and cost-effective health services.
“Effective communication and collaboration with our local partners, including health departments, hospitals, other community health centers, school systems and city and state governments, is how we meet the needs of our communities,” says Collett.
