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High School Students Help Interior Health’s Online Portal

A crucial aspect of patient-centred care in BC is engaging those who truly represent the diversity in the province. One group often missed is youth, so Interior Health is working on ways to engage them in initiatives. In this post, our engagement leader Carol Stathers describes how Interior Health engaged high school students to get feedback on the organization's new health portal:

Continue reading… Focus Group MyHealthPortal.Engaging young volunteers.Patient Voices Network
Results of Engagement Opportunities: PHSA’s Patient and Family Inclusivity Policy

The Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) recently engaged PVN Patient Partners, as well as patients and families across the province, in a province-wide opportunity to help develop a Patient and Family Inclusivity Policy and Playbook (toolkit). In this post, project lead Shannon Griffin recounts PHSA’s experience engaging patient…

Continue reading… Results of engagement opportunities.Patient Voices Network.PHSA
Patient Stories: A True Health Care Partnership

Our patient partner Linda Perkins, from Surrey, has been fighting blindness for the last 20 years. In this post, she tells us her story and the meaningful difference a true health care partner has made in her health and her life:

Continue reading… Linda Perkins.PVN Patient Partner.Surrey
What Matters to You? Patients of All Ages Share Their Stories

On June 6, PVN teamed up with organizations and individuals across the province to ask a simple question: “What Matters to You?” As we mentioned here, the goal of the day was to encourage meaningful conversations between patients, families and caregivers, and their health care providers. Our engagement leader Leah Smith joined “What Matters to You?” Day activities in the Island Health region, so we asked her to tell us more about her amazing experience:

Continue reading… What Matters to You.Vancouver Island.Patient Experience Tree
PVN Members in Abbotsford Gear up for “What Matters to You?” Day 2017

No one can say that our patient partner Bob Strain doesn’t put his heart into spreading the importance of patients expressing what matters to them and taking the lead in their health care. This year, Bob is so dedicated to promoting the message far and wide in preparation for “What Matters to You?” Day tomorrow that he has a full schedule ahead and even enlisted his wife to join him!

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“What Matters to You?” Day: See What Matters to Our Oversight & Advisory Committee Members

As you’ve probably seen in our newsletters and social media feeds, we’ve been deeply involved with “What Matters to You?” Day  the last few months. Since the campaign aligns with PVN’s work and a number of our Oversight & Advisory Committee members have been involved in the planning, we wanted to know what matters to them when it comes to health care. Here’s what they said.

Continue reading… what matters to you 17
Patient Partners in Action: Presenting at an Okanagan College Nursing Class

In early 2016, Okanagan College contacted us in search of an experienced caregiver who would like to speak to a health promotion and gerontology class. The idea was to discuss family members who care for older adults needing assistance, and to identify health promotion strategies and community support for family caregivers.

Continue reading… Patient-Partners-in-Action-Presenting-at-an-Okanagan-College-Nursing-Class
Patient Experience Week: A Provider Perspective

Our third guest blog post for Patient Experience Week is from Colleen Kennedy, who interviewed  social worker Brenda Goossen. Brenda shared her reasons for joining "What Matters to You?" Day and her perspective as a provider on the patient experience.

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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.