Patient Partner, Vancouver Island Eating Disorder Client and Family Advisory Committee

Do you have an eye for quality improvement, an empathetic ear, and experience accessing care for the treatment of an eating disorder? If so, your voice is needed! We are looking for new patient partners to join our Client and Family Advisory Committee, that meets quarterly to discuss the development and provision of eating disorder services provided by Island Health and the Ministry of Children and Family Development.

Open to: Patient partners across the Island Health Authority region

Lead Organization or Department

Island Health, Mental Health & Substance Use

Aim

The Vancouver Island Eating Disorder Client and Family Advisory Committee provides a venue for the voices of clients and families with lived experience with eating disorders to be heard. It provides the opportunity for staff to better understand and learn from patient experiences, in the context of improving the eating disorder services provided by Ministry of Child and Family Development (MCFD) and Island Health (IH) on Vancouver Island. The role of the advisor will include contributing to positive, open discussion with fellow Advisory Committee members, reflecting on insights from personal experience with a focus on how these may inform positive change for clients and families in the future.  Specifically, the role is to:

• Provide advice on strategies and planning initiatives from personal or professional experience;
• Contribute ideas and suggestions on initiatives, through meetings, teleconferences or written input;
• Review information circulated to the committee and provide timely response to all correspondence;
• Strive to understand the goals, objectives and desired outcomes of projects or initiatives under discussion;
• Disseminate information about Vancouver Island eating disorder services and/or community engagement activities through community networks and contacts.

Level of Engagement

This opportunity is at the level of involve on the spectrum of engagement. The promise to you is that the health care partner will involve patients in planning and design phases to ensure ideas or concerns are considered and reflected in alternatives and recommendations.

Eligibility

This invitation is being extended to patient/family members with an interest in this topic, who are willing to volunteer their time, and who:

• have personal or family experience accessing eating disorders services across Vancouver Island, throughout the continuum of care
• live within the Vancouver Island Health Authority region
• are comfortable sharing their story
• are comfortable working and speaking up in large groups
• are at a point of personal recovery where the individual is distanced enough from the disorder that engagement would not cause instability, pain/hardship or trigger relapse

Please Note:

• Not open to individuals who are currently employed by Island Health
• Short listed volunteers will be requested to participate in a telephone interview.
• You must have previously attended a Patient Voices Network orientation session and completed the  volunteer agreement. If you have not attended an orientation session but you are interested in this opportunity, please contact Kira Tozer directly to see if accommodations may be possible.

Logistics

Vacancies: 7-8 Time: Meetings occur quarterly (next one is September 11, 2018), on the second Tuesday of every third month or as determined by members. The meeting are usually from 15:00 to 16:30. Location: In-person at the Royal Jubilee Hospital or Comox Valley Hospital (2 sites linked via video conference) or by teleconference.  One meeting per year will be arranged for everyone to attend in Nanaimo. Commitment: 2 year-term with the option to renew for 1 additional year when invited by MCFD and IH. Please Note: In addition to quarterly committee meetings, members are also encouraged to attend local eating disorder working group meetings on a quarterly basis (or as invited and able via teleconference or in person), as well as occasionally attend Eating Disorder Steering Committee Meetings as invited (via teleconference).

Reimbursement

Mileage and parking to attend closest in-person location for meetings will be reimbursed when applicable.

Background

This committee came about as part of a Joint Regional Plan for eating disorder services on Vancouver Island between Island Health and the Ministry of Children and Family Development. It was developed in an effort to help address the gaps in the under-serviced areas of the island to respond to service fragmentations. The committee includes family and client stakeholders along with representation from the joint Island Health/Ministry of Children and Family Development Eating Disorder Steering Committee and other leadership staff. It is also linked to the regional Steering Committee and local Working Groups. Two members from the Advisory Committee are invited to join the Steering Committee Meetings and their local Working Group meetings on a quarterly basis or as invited and able. Learn more about the committee in their Terms of Reference.

Health Care Partner Contact Information

Kira Tozer
Engagement Leader, Patient & Public Engagement | Vancouver Island
250.888.4525
ktozer@bcpsqc.ca