Attendee, International Conference on Patient- and Family-Centered Care: Promoting Health Equity and Reducing Disparities in Baltimore, MD

Are you an active patient partner interested in deepening your understanding of patient- and family-centred care, with experience working on initiatives targeting disparities in the health system? Read more about this opportunity to attend the International Conference in Baltimore, MD in June 2018!

Open to: Patient partners across BC

Lead Organization or Department

BC Patient Safety & Quality Council’s Patient and Public Engagement Team

Aim

The aim of the conference is to ignite action to improve quality of care for patients and providers; create and strengthen connections and collaboration across all areas of care; and share effective strategies and leading practices to stimulate and sustain improvement. We have the opportunity to sponsor patient partners to attend this conference where they will be encouraged to participate fully in discussions - seeking out new ideas and sharing their own knowledge, perspectives and experiences as relevant - and use their voice for improvement. We value the inclusion of diverse perspectives, from across the province, the continuum of care as well as the public. We also recognize the value in increasing the knowledge, skill-set and network of patients and/or carers affected by relevant disparity and equity issues in the province.

Level of Engagement

This opportunity is at the level of inform on the spectrum of engagement. The promise to you is that you will be provided with balanced and objective information to assist in understanding alternatives and solutions.

Eligibility

• Open to patient partners from across the province, representing a diverse range of regions and communities as well as care experiences and access to care providers
• You must have a passport (and any travel documents you may require) and be comfortable with travelling outside of Canada
• Preference will be given to patient partners who have not received a sponsorship from the BCPSQC to attend another learning opportunity (such as the Quality Forum or one of our workshops) or another conference
• Patient partners should be comfortable speaking with a diverse range of health care providers, leaders, and other stakeholders
• Patients should have previously attended a PVN orientation session. If you have not attended an orientation but are interested please contact Cathy(calmost@bcpsqc.ca)  directly to see if accommodations may be possible

Logistics

• Vacancies: 2
• Patient partners must be able to participate in the full conference June 11-13, 2018 and should be available from June 10-14 to travel the day before and after the conference
• The conference will be hosted at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront. Hotel accommodation will be booked for participants in a neighbouring hotel
• Patient partners who attend will be expected to share their experiences and what they learned in a format to be determined (e.g. blog posts or as a patient speaker, etc.)
• Sessions run from approximately 0730-1700 each day, with the option of attending evening events

Reimbursement

• Registration and all travel costs incurred to attend these events will be covered or reimbursed in accordance with the BC Patient Safety & Quality Council Travel Policy guidelines.
• As much as possible, we will pre-pay for travel expenses directly (e.g. booking flights and accommodation). For expenses we cannot pay for in advance (e.g. bus fare, meals, etc.), patient partners will need to collect receipts and submit them with an expense reimbursement form to our Vancouver office. We are able to provide expedited payment within a couple of weeks via cheque.
• If required, assistance may be provided upon request to ensure hotel deposits and incidental expenses are looked after in advance to reduce or eliminate the need for post-event reimbursement. If you believe this applies to you, please contact Cathy Almost (calmost@bcpsqc.ca) to discuss this in more detail.

Background

The 8th International Conference on Patient- and Family-Centered Care: Promoting Health Equity and Reducing Disparities, will be held June 11-13, 2018, in Baltimore, MD at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel. The Conference will feature programs and strategies that address disparities in health and health care, as well as programs that are dedicated to collaboration among health care professionals, patients, and families to address the challenges in complex health care systems. The Conference provides opportunities to share innovations at the direct care level as well as the organizational, community, regional, and national levels. Key Topics include: Health Equity Through Partnerships, Patient and Family Advisors-Essential Allies, Role of Leadership, Partnerships in Research and Evaluation, Education for Interprofessional and Collaborative Practice, Better Together-Patients and Families as Partners in Hospitals, Partnerships in Primary and Other Ambulatory Care. Joe Gallagher, Kwunuhmen of Tla'Amin First Nation ancestry, Chief Executive Officer for the First Nations Health Authority in BC, will be one of the keynote speakers. Members of the BCPSQC Public and Patient Engagement Team along with a confirmed patient partner, will be presenting at this conference on Demystifying Patient Engagement: Principles and Strategies. Patient partners will benefit by attending and learning about health equity and how to reduce health disparity.

Health Care Partner Contact Information

Cathy Almost
Engagement Leader, Patient and Public Engagement | Northern BC
250.615.9932
calmost@bcpsqc.ca