Residential Care for Me – Wheelchair Provision Working Group

Have you ever needed to obtain a wheelchair for yourself or a family member in residential care? Do you want to join this working group for up to three months to help develop communication tools to assist other residents and families in the process?

Open to: Volunteers in the Lower Mainland

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Lead Organization or Department

Providence Health Care, Occupational Therapy

Aim

As a patient partner, your voice and experience will drive the development of communication tools to assist residents and families in understanding the process for obtaining a wheelchair in residential care. This will involve reviewing the Ministry of Health's policy (HCC Policy 6.F.1, Residential Care Services, Benefits and Allowable Charges, Basic Wheelchair Benefit) and collaborating with an occupational therapist to identify the most helpful and meaningful ways to assist residents and families through the equipment acquisition process.

Level of Engagement

This opportunity is at the level of collaborate (at a local community or program 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 decision making, developing alternatives, and solutions and include your recommendations into the decision as much as possible.

Eligibility

• Experience obtaining a wheelchair in residential care an asset.
• Computer skills (i.e. email, Microsoft Word) also an asset.
• Patients should have previously attended a PVN orientation session and signed the Volunteer Agreement. If you have not attended an orientation but are interested, please contact the engagement leader directly to see if accommodations may be possible.

Logistics

• Vacancies: 2
• In-person meetings will be held at one of Providence Health Care's (PHC) facilities, and will be determined based on convenience for volunteers. Meetings will be a combination of in-person and phone with email communication. Frequency of meetings will depend on scope of project determined by the committee members. Location
• Time frame for project completion is March 31st, 2017.

Reimbursement

Expenses related to travel (i.e. transit, parking up to $18/day, approved mileage) to attend sessions will be reimbursed by Providence Health Care.

Background

This initiative is related to residential care, specifically the Ministry of Health's policy on basic wheelchair provision (HCC Policy 6.F.1, Residential Care Services, Benefits and Allowable Charges, Basic Wheelchair Benefit). The policy came into effect January 2016 and no resident/family specific communication tools have been developed. Occupational therapists at PHC residential care homes are excited to work with patient partners to address this gap and improve access to information for residents and families.

Health Care Partner Contact Information

Karen Estrin
Engagement Leader, Patient and Public Engagement | Lower Mainland & Sunshine Coast
604.668.8245
kestrin@bcpsqc.ca

 

Interested?

This opportunity will be open until it is filled.

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