The Primary Care Program website is currently being updated. Please visit: http://pcap.stanford.edu for current information on our the program or view the Information Sessions link: http://pcap.stanford.edu/admissions/information_sessions.html

The Primary Care Associate Program, cooperatively administered by the Stanford University School of Medicine and Foothill College, prepares physician assistants and family nurse practitioners to work mainly with primary care physicians who care for under served populations. The curriculum also includes limited training in hospitals and sub specialties.

Physician assistants and family nurse practitioners (PAs/FNPs) work with physicians as part of a health-care team. They help improve the quality of and access to primary care for areas and populations designated as being under served. The Program’s curriculum emphasizes the skills necessary to recognize and treat common primary care problems which include acute, chronic, emergent or surgical conditions in patients of all ages. Our students are trained to:

• Evaluate the health status of patients
• Diagnose and treat common illnesses
• Manage stable chronic diseases
• Deliver preventive care
• Counsel individuals on family, psycho social, and health-related problems

The Program trains all students for practice as physician assistants. In addition, registered nurses who graduate from the Program are eligible to practice as family nurse practitioners in California. After completing the entire curriculum, a Certificate of Clinical Proficiency is awarded to successful students at graduation.

The Primary Care Associate Program's mission is to train PAs/FNPs for practice in primary care and under served communities and to increase the enrollment and deployment of under-represented minorities, while being responsive to internal and external community needs.

See: pcap.stanford.edu

Click here if you have not read the Program Curriculum Requirement Sheet!


Director's Desk: Additional Program Information.

• About the Primary Care Associate Program
• Program Emphasis
• Family Nurse Practitioners
• Community Satellites
• Masters in Public Health Articulation Plan
• Academic Credit

The Primary Care Associate Program offers students a 16-month curriculum that combines the traditional concepts of both physician assistant and nurse practitioner training. This reflects the Program philosophy that no functional distinction in practice exists between these two types of primary health care professionals.

Founded in 1971, the five-quarter Primary Care Associate Program features full-time classroom training during its first quarter and emphasizes clinical training during the remaining four quarters. History-taking, physical examination skills, basic laboratory techniques, common diagnostic and therapeutic procedures as well as patient counseling and education skills are important parts of the curriculum.

After an intensive course in physical diagnosis, students participate in lectures and clinical experiences in general medicine, pharmacology, emergency medicine, pediatrics, women’s health, geriatrics, and behavioral science. Students are required to make special arrangements to participate in a surgery rotation. In addition, the Program includes a multicultural lecture series in social, economic, and health issues within the Latino, African-American, Asian, and American Indian ethnic groups. A Medical Spanish course is offered for students who already possess some proficiency in the Spanish language.

Students receive classroom instruction and can access the medical library, learning resource center and labs at Stanford University’s School of Medicine. Most clinical experiences take place in community preceptorships away from the School of Medicine. Students also participate in a hospital-based inpatient rotation.

View Scheudule at the following url: http://pcap.stanford.edu/program/

* After the first quarter, students accepted through the San Diego community-based admissions process will have portions of their didactic training at Stanford and portions in San Diego.

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Consistent with the demands of its accelerated, integrative training curriculum and its goals to train health care providers in the delivery of primary health care services to medically underserved populations, the Primary Care Associate Program seeks applicants with:
Extensive clinical experience:

• Background and potential for a career in primary care
• Understanding of the Physician Assistant/Family Nurse Practitioner role
• Levels of clinical responsibility that involve decision making
• Job-related expertise
• Evidence of good working relationships with other health-care team members and sensitivity in caring for diverse patients
• Strong references from physicians and other clinical supervisors
• Recency of clinical experience

Strong academic preparation:

• Strong performance in admission prerequisite coursework
• Demonstrated ability to succeed at the college level
• Ability to learn in an accelerated, self-paced environment

Evidence of dedication to medically underserved areas and populations:

• Prior clinical experiences with medically underserved populations (e.g., homeless, non-English-speaking, immigrant, refugee, or those with cultural or financial barriers to health-care access)
• Employment in clinical sites geared to the underserved (e.g., county facilities, prisons, Indian Health Service clinics, community clinics, or free clinics)
• Residence and/or employment in underserved geographic areas (e.g., inner city or rural location)
• Ties to economically disadvantaged and/or under-represented communities
• Language skills applicable to targeted populations
• Community service activities related to underserved populations
• Awareness of social issues

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The Primary Care Associate Program curriculum provides registered nurses (RNs) with advanced education as family nurse practitioners. RNs build on prior academic and clinical skills to develop expertise in primary health care with special emphasis on medically underserved communities.

Advanced nursing practice is an evolving discipline identified by its knowledge of caring and its application of that knowledge to patients. It is through continued development of concepts, principles, and processes of primary health care as well as evaluation of research and practice efforts that the scope of advanced nursing practice for nurse practitioners continues to be defined.

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The Primary Care Associate Program has established community-based recruitment, admissions and preceptorships in Kern, Monterey, San Benito, Imperial and San Diego Counties with the ultimate goal of deploying graduates in these and surrounding communities.

Applicants who have a history of living in these areas and working with medically-underserved populations are welcomed to inquire about the community-based admissions process. Successful applicants admitted through community-based admissions will be required to complete preceptorships in the counties corresponding to their admission site.

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All graduates earn a Certificate of Clinical Proficiency from the Stanford University School of Medicine. This certificate does not represent Stanford University Academic units. Academic credit is awarded by Foothill College at the Associate of Science degree level. Registered nurses participating in the program qualify for 30-60 contact units with the California Board of Registered Nursing. The BRN Provider number is 01306.

Two California State Universities allow credit and advanced standing for a higher degree upon completion of the PCA program. San Jose State University allows credit toward a Bachelor of Science in the Health Sciences or a Bachelor of Science in Nursing for nurses. San Francisco State University allows credit toward a Baccalaureate or Master's degree in Nursing. The amount of additional time and schooling involved in pursuing advanced degrees varies and depends on coursework completed by a student prior to entering the Primary Care Associate Program..

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The Stanford University - Foothill College Primary Care Associate Program, in collaboration with San Jose State University (SJSU), offers a plan for currently accepted students to obtain their Master’s in Public Health (MPH). Students admitted into the Primary Care Associate Program who hold a BA/BS with at least a 3.0 G.P.A will be invited to submit a separate application for the MPH program; the Graduate Records Examination (GRE) is not required. If accepted for this track, students will then need to register simultaneously at SJSU and Foothill College, earning credit for coursework completed during their PA/FNP education towards their MPH. After completing our PA program, students enrolled in the SJSU MPH program are required to attend SJSU for an additional year to complete the academic requirements for the degree. Students with AA/AS degrees or less are not candidates for the MPH option; only students that hold a BA/BS degree are potentially eligible. Student with academic experience at foreign institutions will have their coursework evaluated on an individual basis to ensure equivalency with SJSU requirements.

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may be obtained by contacting the Primary Care Associate Program:

Primary Care Associate Program
1215 Welch Rd, Modular G
Palo Alto, CA 94305-5408

Office: 650-725-6959
Fax: 650-723-9692

Web: http://pcap.stanford.edu

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