Because your voice matters.

Quality Improvement Team member, Rapid Outpatient Diagnosis of Advanced Cancer, Royal Columbian Hospital

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Open to Fraser – Vancouver Coastal, Volunteers in the Fraser Health region

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Diagnosing advanced cancer can sometimes be challenging, with patients looking at a lengthy stay in hospital via the emergency room or an agonizing wait through the outpatient system. A team of health care providers and administrators at Royal Columbian Hospital are initiating a quality improvement project that will look at streamlining this process to provide better patient care and would like to include a patient volunteer on the Quality Improvement team.

Open to: Volunteers in the Fraser Health region

Lead Organization or Department

Royal Columbian Hospital

Aim

To develop a patient-centred, outpatient pathway for an advanced cancer diagnosis, including the goals, objectives and service delivery option.

Level of Engagement

This opportunity is at the level of involve on the spectrum of engagement (www.iap2.org). The promise to you is that the health care partner will work with you to ensure that your ideas and concerns are reflected in recommendations and provide feedback on how your input affected the decision.

Eligibility

  • Volunteers from communities in Fraser Health
  • Special consideration would be given to those who have been involved with a cancer diagnosis, either as a patient or as a loved one.
Patients should have previously attended a PVN orientation session.  If you have not attended an orientation but are interested please contact Jami directly to see if accommodations may be possible.

Logistics

  • Vacancies:  1-2
  • Date and Time:  To be determined based on Patient Volunteer availability
  • Location:  Telephone conversation
  • Commitment:  One two-hour interview, at the beginning of the project with possibility of a check in further into the project

Reimbursement

N/A Telephone only

Background

When patients are diagnosed with advanced cancer, the process from the time they initially see their family physician to the time they actually have a formal treatment plan can be long and complex. The goal of this project is to create a pathway at Royal Columbian Hospital which streamlines this process. As a result we hope to decrease the use of the Emergency room and inpatient hospital stays during this time. Patient feedback is sought to learn what would be the priorities for patients when they are faced with the potential for newly diagnosed cancer, and what their ideal situation would be moving forward.

Engagement Leader Contact Information

Jami Brown
Engagement Leader, Patient and Public Engagement | Fraser Valley
604.510.0449
jbrown@bcpsqc.ca

 

From Our Community

Karla Warkotsch

Patient Experience Consultant – Interior Health

Karla Warkotsch

The question I like to ask health care employees is ‘Who is this for?’ and ‘Do we have the right people at the table?’ As a health care employee, I see how easy it is to fall into doing for, rather than doing with patients. The voices of the patient, family and caregiver are essential to ensure the patient is central to the direction and focus of the work being done.

Members of the BCPSQC pose for a team photo at the Quality Forum 2019.

The BC Patient Safety & Quality Council administers the Patient Voices Network. Using evidence-informed strategies, the Council shifts culture, improves clinical practice and advances person- and family-centred care to support high-quality care for every person in our province.