The Patient Advocacy Program was developed in Fall 2004 to meet intersecting needs in the community and at Stanford University:

• The need among area clinics for reliable, trained volunteers to enhance patient care
• The demand among students for substantive clinical and community-based experiences with underserved populations
• The need to build a diverse and culturally competent healthcare workforce

The Patient Advocacy Program vision is to sustain a reliable corps of trained student volunteers at area free and community clinics with minimal impact on the partner clinics’ resources.

Students interested in participating in the Patient Advocacy Program must apply in the Winter. Acceptance to the Program is contingent upon a student’s commitment to enroll in the required course and complete the clinic-based program requirements over the subsequent academic year.