Focus Group Participant, Mental Health Service Provider Toolkit – A Trans Care BC Initiative

Are you a transgender, gender diverse and/or Two-Spirit person with an interest in helping to improve the accessibility of mental health services for trans people? Would you like to help review a written resource intended to help mental health providers offer better service?

Open to: Patient partners across the province

Lead Organization or Department

Provincial Health Services Authority - Trans Care BC

Aim

We are developing a written toolkit to help mental health providers provide better care for trans, gender diverse and Two-Spirit. We are looking for feedback from patient partners who have experience with the services we are attempting to improve. The patient partners will be asked to review a draft version of the toolkit, provide feedback and suggested revisions.

Level of Engagement

This opportunity is at the level of consult on the spectrum of engagement. The promise to you is that the health care partner will listen to and acknowledge your ideas and concerns, and provide feedback on how your input affected the decision.

Eligibility

The patient partners for this engagement will have:

• Lived experience as a transgender, gender diverse and/or Two-Spirit person
• Experience as a user of the mental health system (i.e.: mental health and substance use services, private counselling services, or other mental health programs and systems)
• Interest in reviewing documents and providing suggested additions and revisions (experience with editing is helpful)
• Access to internet, phone and email for communication and review of materials

NOTE: You do not need to have a background in writing or editing to help. We value a diversity of lived experiences from trans, gender diverse and Two-Spirit people who have accessed mental health care, and consider this lived experience our main priority. If you have a strong interest in this work but have not yet completed a PVN orientation and volunteer agreement, are unsure if your experience is a good fit or feel another format of engagement would work better with your availability, please contact the engagement leader directly.

Logistics

• Vacancies: 5
• Format: Patient partners with experience in accessing mental health services will be asked to review a 106 page toolkit in preparation for a teleconference focus group. They will be asked to provide suggestions, revisions and additions to the toolkit. We will listen to and acknowledge their ideas and concerns, and provide feedback on how their input affected the decision.
• Introductory call: Monday Nov 20, at 3pm
• Focus Group: TBD during the week of December 4 - the call will be set to accommodate interested patient partners' schedules.

Reimbursement

A toll free phone line will be provided for teleconference meetings and no travel will be required.

Background

This toolkit is intended as a general guide for those that provide mental health and well being services to transgender, gender diverse and Two-Spirit people. The toolkit is a collaborative effort between Trans Care BC, trans, gender diverse, and Two-Spirit  people and mental health providers with many years of experience working alongside trans communities. It contains information and practice resources aimed at creating safer clinical environments for trans people and enhancing skills and knowledge regarding trans cultural safety and mental health. This opportunity has come about because of the desire to include patient voices and perspectives in the toolkit. The content of the toolkit will be reviewed by other mental health clinicians and people that work with Trans Care BC.

Health Care Partner Contact Information

Jacquelyne Foidart
Engagement Leader, Patient and Public Engagement | Thompson Cariboo
250.879.1077
jfoidart@bcpsqc.ca