Posted • Last updated
Closed
Commitment: Long-term
Connection method: Virtual
Open to Provincial Region
Last updated
Volunteer Opportunity
Would you like to reduce weight bias and stigma among health professionals across the province? If yes, Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) are looking for up to 10 patient partners to participate in an advisory group and/or participate in interviews to ensure providers can better support patients and their families through person-centered care that reduces weight stigma and discrimination.
Lead Organization/Department
PHSA, BC Children’s Hospital: Health Promotion & Health Literacy
Aim
As members of the advisory group, patient partners will support the redevelopment of the BalancedView resource by sharing their experiences of weight stigma and discrimination, give feedback about what person-centered care means to them, and share their ideas of how the resource should be updated. This will help ensure patient voices are at the core of the resource development.
The opportunity to participate may include:
• Becoming a member the BalancedView Community Advisory Group, with the support of a patient engagement advisor
• Participate in a 1:1 telephone interview in the language of your choice. Phone interviews will take approximately 30 minutes.
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
Open to patient partners across the province who:
• Are above 15yrs of age
• Have lived experience of weight stigma and discrimination either directly or as a family member/caregiver
• Are comfortable sharing their story
• Are comfortable participating in meetings via Zoom
• Patient partners give a lot of themselves: time, energy, and the sharing of personal stories or experiences that may be difficult. It is important that this not be done at the expense of your own health/wellbeing. There is a potential risk that patient partners may face emotional distress through reflecting on and sharing their experiences, as well as hearing about experiences from other patient partners. With this in mind, we ask that you only consider participating if you feel it would be safe and comfortable for you to do so.
As connection and relationship building is important to PHSA, please note that informal meet and greets will be part of the selection process for short-listed patient partners.
If you have a strong interest in this work but have not yet completed a PVN orientation and Patient Partner Commitments, are unsure if your experience is a good fit or feel another format of engagement would work better with your availability, please contact Cassy Mitchell.
Logistics
• Number of vacancies: Up to 10
• Date and Time: Monthly meetings, for 90 minutes in duration. Will start November 2022, but date/time TBD
• Location: Virtual participation via Zoom
• Commitment: Monthly meetings for 6 months
Reimbursement
No out of pocket expenses are anticipated for this engagement opportunity. However, if you meet the eligibility criteria, but have concerns about your ability to participate, please contact Cassy Mitchell cmitchell@bcpsqc.ca to see if support options are available. We are always seeking to better understand and reduce barriers to participation.
Recognition for time will be provided according to PHSA’s organizational policies.
Background
BalancedView is an evidence-based training platform designed to reduce weight bias and stigma among health professionals across BC. The training resource was developed in 2015 and since then, new research and evidence have continued to grow. In addition, technology for an online training resource and the education needs for the health professional audience may have changed given the age of the resource.
There is also a need to ensure that BalancedView has a diverse range of patient stories and experience embedded within the resource.
