Patricia “ Trish ” Collett
PA-C & Deputy CEO , Community Care of West Virginia
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-athome 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 schoolbased health centers from four centers
Photo by Christopher Sigley .
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 walkin 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
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