Clinical Governance Framework: Partnering with consumers

Patients and consumers

• Are involved in planning and sharing decisions about individual health care
• Ask for more information, information in different formats or a translator, if required
• Let the workforce know who should be involved in sharing decisions about their care
• Provide feedback to the health service organisation or clinician about care experiences
• Consider being involved in the governance of the organisation, when opportunities exist
• Consider being involved in the development and review of health information for consumers, when opportunities exist

Clinicians

• Understand the evidence on consumer engagement, and its contribution to the safety and quality of health care
• Understand how health literacy might affect the way a consumer gains access to, understands and uses health information
• Support patients to have access to, and use, high-quality, easy-to-understand information about health care
• Support patients to share decision-making about their own health care, to the extent that they choose
• Work with consumer representative groups to ensure that systems of care are designed to encourage consumer engagement in decision-making
• Assist consumer access to their own health information, and complaints and feedback systems
• Implement and fully take part in the organisation’s open disclosure policy

Managers (including clinical managers)

• Understand the barriers for patients and consumers to understand and use health services, and develop strategies to improve the health literacy environment of the health service organisation
• Ensure that patients and consumers have access to high-quality, easy-to-understand information about health care
• Set up organisational systems to enable consumers to fully engage in
  • planning and sharing decisions about their own health care
  • planning, designing, reviewing and evaluating clinical systems, and safety and quality of care
• Collect and review patient experience information as part of quality improvement processes
• Create opportunities for consumer involvement in relevant operational committees
• When appropriate, set up specific consumer advisory committees

Governing bodies

• Show leadership and commitment to partnerships with consumers
• Set up high-level policies and procedures that support partnerships with consumers
• Ensure that the organisation has effective systems for consumer complaints and open disclosure, and monitor performance of these systems
• Ensure consumer input to decisions of the governing body
• Create opportunities for consumer involvement in subcommittees of the governing body
• Ensure that organisational systems support consumer engagement in decision-making
• When appropriate, set up a specific consumer advisory committee to the board