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RCR: Giving Back to the Community

At Rochester Clinical Research, we feel it is important to give back to the larger community. We strive to be a good corporate citizen, and our employees are also engaged in a wide range of volunteer endeavors. Here is a sampling of some of the things in which we are involved:
  • RCR is a major donor to the Mercy Outreach Center which provides care for the uninsured and underinsured. RCR began supporting the Mercy Outreach Center 5 years ago, after noting an increasing number of our study volunteers were without insurance.
     
  • To help diabetics in the community, Dr. Weerasinghe started a “Diabetes Self-Management Group” educational program in 2003. A weekly series of 7 educational programs are offered in the spring and fall. Several employees of RCR employees, including a physician, a nurse practitioner, a dietician, and an administrative assistant donate their time to this program. Close to 300 diabetics have participated in this empowering program.
     
  • RCR staff have partnered with the Rochester Business Alliance in generously donating to the Thanksgiving Basket Program.
     
  • RCR staff adopts families for Special Santa Christmas gifts through the Hillside Children’s Center.
     
  • RCR makes financial contributions to The United Way, The American Diabetes Association, The Center for Information and Study of Clinical Research Participation (CISCRP), The Hemophilia Center, and The Association of Retarded Citizens (ARC), The Mary Cariola Children’s Center, the Golisano Children’s Center at SMH and the University of Rochester School of Nursing.
     
  • RCR has sponsors a Monroe County Youth Hockey Team, the Scottsville Squirt A “Ice Hawks”.
     
  • Patricia Larrabee, CEO, and Chris Kelly, R.N. both donate their time to the Mercy Outreach Center. Pat is on the Board of Directors, and Chris assists patients complete paperwork for the prescription assistance program.
     
  • Vicky Fink, Dietitian, volunteers with Rochester Area Diabetes Educators. She also fundraises for Wayne Central High School to financially assist graduating seniors who are going on to college or vocational training
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  • Michael Brennan, NP, has been providing medical care to the underserved for the past 15 years, making weekly visits to migrant farmworker camps in a Mobile Health Unit operated by Oak Orchard Community Health Center, Brockport. He also volunteers with the not-for-profit agency, Harvesting Hope for Farmworkers.
     
  • Dr. Weerasinghe is on the Board of Directors of Finger Lakes Health Systems Agency, and is a volunteer steward for a wetland preserve owned by the Genesee Land Trust.
     
  • Joanne Pernice, Bookkeeper, has volunteered at the zoo for 22 years. She primarily does outreach programs, taking animals to schools and other institutions to education children and adults about animals, and the need for conservation efforts.
     
  • Dave Larrabee, Finance Officer, serves on the Agency Advancement Committee of the Board of Directors for the Mary Cariola Children’s Center, a United Way agency that provides teaching and residential program services to pre-adolescent children and young teens with multiple physical and emotional disabilities. He also volunteers with the American Red Cross as a member of the National Disaster Services Team. He may be deployed anywhere in the United States to assist localities when a natural disaster threatens the area, and/or to aid residents in the aftermath of these devastating events. The most common local incidents involve providing shelter and temporary aid to families displaced by residential fires.

Community Workshops

As a leading Rochester-area business, RCR has a strong commitment to the health and well-being of our community. We offer a number of programs and workshops to help area residents maintain active, healthy lifestyles. These include support in the areas of diabetes, weight loss, and workplace wellness.
 
Rochester Clinical Research performs clinical research trials and studies for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. We rapidly recruit and screen quality volunteers to participate in clinical studies, and we maintain a large database of volunteers. Study volunteers receive free study-related medical care, investigational medicines, and a monetary stipend to compensate for their time and travel. RCR studies include therapeutic areas and drug categories such as weight loss, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, flu vaccines, and smoking cessation. Our state-of-the-art medical office facility is staffed by highly qualified, caring physicians, investigators, and nurses. RCR is located in Rochester NY and serves the Finger Lakes region of New York. RCR is a WBENC-Certified Women's Business Enterprise.