Patient and Citizen Innovation Council in family practice

Patient engagement is integral to the Patient's Medical Home model. Patient-centred care is more than what happens in the examination room. Decisions around clinic processes, work flow, and initiative prioritization also warrant a patient perspective.

The Academic Family Medicine Clinic at the South Health Campus in Calgary, Alta, identified a need for patient and community advisory expertise regarding clinic initiatives and quality improvement. A council was proposed to engage patients and citizens in exploring meaningful ways to drive innovation and improve the care experience.

The Academic Family Medicine Clinic partnered with the South Health Campus Patient and Family Centred Care staff in developing a dedicated family medicine patient and community council. The resulting committee of 6 volunteers and 3 staff members has delivered presentations to incoming family medicine residents and staff on the role of a patient advisory council; advised on methodology to collect and represent broad patient perspectives; provided patient-perspective input to operations management and quality improvement committees; developed a pilot patient satisfaction and experience survey; and brought additional perspective, based on learnings from other industries and professions with experience in "customer service," on how to enhance the quality of the patient experience.

A patient advisory council has the potential to reach beyond simple patient engagement toward functional involvement in decision making about clinic operations.