Advanced Communication Training (ACT) Program

The Advanced Communication Training (ACT) Program is an intensive, interdisciplinary experiential training program in Serious Illness Conversations (SICs), focused on the MVP Model. ACT comprises facilitated small group learning and practice with patient-actors, followed by ongoing support to promote retention and enhancement of SIC knowledge, skills, and confidence over time.

Thomas Carroll, M.D., Ph.D. is ACT’s Director. In response to Covid-19 constraints in the Spring of 2020, program founders Thomas Carroll and Robert Horowitz, M.D. adapted the traditionally in-person experience to a remote format. Ultimately, the Covid-19-inspired brief version reached over 700 clinicians across UR Medicine.

We are proud that the ACT Program has been embraced by the Medical Center leadership as a foundational model of communication which is being woven into the fabric of UR Medicine culture, language and training. We are also most grateful for the philanthropic support of Mr. Jerry and Mrs. Clare Rotenberg, ACT’s Founding Sponsors. Their generosity has made possible the extension of Re-ACT—the new virtual adaptation—to ever more learners from across the institution.