Check out full details in the media release linked here & below! Head on over to our become a member page to apply. Participation is inclusive to all residents across the Kootenay Boundary region: https://kbpacc.ca/become-a-member/
Kootenay Boundary Patient Advisory Committee & Community
November 2nd, 2021 | Media Release
Patient Advisory Group Seeks New Members
To Help Transform Health Care in Kootenay Boundary
Kootenay Boundary Region – Are you interested in making health care more patient and family-centred and equitable? The Kootenay Boundary Patient Advisory Committee & Community (PACC) may be the group for you and it’s looking for new members!
“Patients are central to conversations about the health system, from the bedside to the boardroom,” shares Mindy Smith, PACC Chair. “Our members bring their experiences as patients and citizens to provide perspectives on important issues to health care providers and policymakers in our region. We want to increase our membership to better represent the communities of Kootenay Boundary, both geographical and identity-based.”
The PACC provides input into decisions related to the Kootenay Boundary Collaborative Services Committee (CSC), a group of health care leaders, providers & coordinators, and Aboriginal and patient partners. The CSC is tasked with advancing primary health care through enhanced team-based care in acute, residential, and community care settings.
Dr. Shelina Musaji, local physician and CSC Co-Chair, shares “patients have been instrumental in the design and implementation of the Primary Care Network (PCN), and this has contributed to its early success. The CSC works well as a group and we value our collaboration with patient partners. Their voices are important to ensure that patients are well-represented in all our discussions about health care in the Kootenay Boundary.”
Suzanne Lee, Co-Chair of the CSC and Director, Clinical Operations Boundary & Kootenay Boundary Primary Care Lead with Interior Health echoes this view. “We must bring the patient voice to the forefront of our work if we are to transform our current system of care into a patient and family-centred system that represents the people we serve and provides the best possible outcomes. We must listen to the patient experience to make the decisions that will transform health care.”
The Kootenay Boundary Patient Advisory Committee & Community is warmly inviting residents to explore their new website at https://kbpacc.ca to learn more about their work and how to get involved. Participation is inclusive, respectful, and open to all Kootenay Boundary residents.
For more information, please reach out to pacc@divisionsbc.ca or call 604.373.9466.
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ABOUT: The Kootenay Boundary Patient Advisory Committee & Community (PACC) is a passionate group of volunteer citizens working together to make a difference in health care in our region. The Committee brings patient voices on important issues to health care providers and policymakers and has been providing input on health care in our region since 2018.
In 2021, it developed a 3-year strategic plan that includes expanding the Committee. By having more patients participate in the PACC, we can better represent the diversity of patient voices in our communities and represent what people need from their health care providers and the health care system.
As an advocate for patient perspectives from within the system, the Committee contributes to real and constructive change in our region. The Committee aims to strengthen patient engagement in the region, increase patients’ influence on health care system change, and educate and empower people to be more knowledgeable and effective partners in health care at all levels.
