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Categories: My Experience, News & Events
Our project coordinator Shannon Sahota joined Fraser Health’s Patient Experience Summit on December 2 and had a great time watching PVN Patient Partners in action. In this guest post she tells us about her experience and recaps the event:
“There has been much going on in the world of PVN, and we are thankful for our members who continue to share their perspectives and experiences within the health care system. PVN works to create change within the system and provide patient partners an opportunity to voice their concerns, needs, and suggestions on improving quality of care. I’m always so excited when I have the opportunity to see patient partners in action myself!
On December 2, I was honoured to attend Fraser Health’s Patient Experience Summit, an internal forum for Fraser Health programs to share their quality improvement projects focused on increasing positive patient experiences. There were over 150 participants, ranging from a variety of backgrounds such as acute care, community care, patient partners, senior leaders, and frontline staff.
Our engagement leader for the Fraser Valley region, Jami Brown, moderated a session named “Fraser Health and Patient Voice Network: Active Partnerships for Quality.” It specifically focused on the collaboration between Fraser Health and PVN towards a system that puts patient needs first, and participants had the chance to ask questions and mingle with patient engagement projects across Fraser Health, learning from their successes and challenges.
The sessions were centred in celebrating the patient perspective, so five patient partners were invited to share their unique experiences and how they work towards improving BC’s health care system. They were able to join round table discussions with health care partners about the initiatives that they have been involved in and what some of the outcomes were, and it was so interesting! Some of the projects and initiatives in which they have been participating included:
- White Rock/South Surrey Health Operations Committee
- CARES: The Community Actions and Resources Empowering Seniors Committee
- Medication Quality Improvement Project – Regional
- Fraser Health Patient Advisory Council
- Acute Care Orientations – Region-Wide
I was moved by the opportunity to see patient partners live in action sharing the importance of including the patient voice, and how the patient perspective yields positive outcomes at the community as well as a policy level. It was very inspiring to see health care and patient partners collaborating, asking questions, and sharing their thoughts on the essentiality around including the patient voice and ensuring positive patient experiences at all levels. Thank you to all who came in with open minds and hearts!”
If you would like to learn more about the projects and how to volunteer with Fraser Health, feel free to get in touch with our engagement leader for the Fraser Valley region, Jami Brown.
Author: Shannon Sahota
Shannon is the Project Coordinator for the Patient and Public Engagement team with the BC Patient Safety & Quality Council, working closely with PVN. Patient engagement and providing opportunities for patients and families to be at the centre of their own care, is what makes her tick! In her spare time, she enjoys yoga, doing anything outdoors, writing, and most importantly, spending time with her loved ones.
