Northern Health Person-and Family-Centred Care Strategy Steering Committee

Are you someone who is passionate about person-centered health services in northern BC? Are you a strategic thinker who wants to work closely with many different health care partners committed to leading Northern Health towards a person-and family- centred approach to care? If so, this opportunity with the Northern Health Professional Practice team may interest you!

Open to: Patient partners across Northern Health

Lead Organization or Department

Northern Health(NH) Professional Practice

Aim

For NH, person- and family- centred care (PFCC) is an approach to the planning, delivery, and evaluation of health services grounded in mutually beneficial partnerships among health care providers, patients/clients, and families. The aim of this steering committee is to provide direction and guidance to the PFCC Implementation team, and reports regularly through NH Executive and Board Committee processes as they strive to embed this work throughout Northern Health. Patients will work collaboratively to ensure that the views and interests of patients and family members are included in this strategy.

Level of Engagement

This opportunity is at the level of collaborate (at a system-wide strategic leadership level) on the spectrum of engagement (www.iap2.org). The promise to you is that the health care partner will look to you for advice in developing, implementing and evaluating national, provincial and regional policy and/or research to ensure the health care system is responsive to the patients’ experience as much as possible.

Eligibility

• Patient partners from across northern BC are encouraged to apply.
• Patients should be comfortable working in a team setting with a diverse range of health care leaders and decision makers, focusing on strategic matters.
• Patients should have previously attended a PVN orientation session and have a signed volunteer agreement on file. If you have not attended an orientation but are interested, please contact Cathy Almost or Anthony Gagne directly to see if accommodations may be possible.

Logistics

• Vacancies: 3 – one representative from each health service delivery area is preferred.
• Opportunity will begin in March/April 2017. Meetings will be held bi-monthly, with extra meetings being called by co-chairs if required.
• Meetings will be held primarily via webinar and/or teleconference. Face-to-face meetings will be rare and scheduled as-needed.
• This placement requires a one-year commitment, with a possibility of renewal for another year.

Reimbursement

Expenses related to participating, including travel (flights, accomodations, and meals) if required, will be covered by Northern Health in accordance with their reimbursement guidelines.

Background

Northern Health (NH) defines person-and family-centred care (PFCC) as “an approach to the planning, delivery and evaluation of health services grounded in mutually beneficial partnerships among health care providers, patients/clients, and families. It redefines the relationship in health care and leads to better health outcomes, wiser allocation of resources, and greater individual and family satisfaction.” This definition of PFCC will help guide NH staff in this work, and was developed following four key principles of PFCC:

• Dignity and Respect: person and family knowledge, values, beliefs and cultural backgrounds are respected and incorporated into the planning and delivery of care.
• Information Sharing: health care practitioners communicate and share complete and unbiased information with people and their families in ways that are affirming and useful. Information is timely, complete and accurate for effective participation in care and decision-making.
• Participation: people are encouraged and supported in participating in care and decision-making at the level they choose.
• Collaboration: patients, families, health care practitioners, and health care leaders collaborate in policy and program development, implementation and evaluation; in facility design; and in professional education, as well as the delivery of care.

The NH PFCC Strategy Steering Committee will be made up of a diverse range of leaders, senior staff, point of care providers, and patients. Please see the Terms of Reference for additional details about committee make-up and mandate. This work has been embedded within the NH 2016-21 Strategic plan, and formally endorsed by the Board of Directors. Please see the memo from Cathy Ulrich, NH CEO, for more information about how this work links to the strategic plan.

Health Care Partner Contact Information

Anthony Gagné
Engagement Leader, Patient and Public Engagement | Northern Interior
250.961.5156
agagne@bcpsqc.ca