Introduction to Standard 2:
Partnering with consumers
Advice Centre Network Meeting
Nicola Dunbar
October 2012
Standard 2: Partnering with Consumers

Standard:
• Leaders of a heath service organisation implement
systems to support partnering with patients, carers and
other consumers to improve the safety and quality of care.
Patients, carers, consumers and other members of the
workforce use the systems for partnering with consumers.

Intent:
• To create a health service that is responsive to patient,
carer and consumer input and needs

Context:
• Applies in the implementation of all other Standards
Rationale for the Standard

Policy framework internationally and nationally
• Declaration of Alma Ata (1978):
• “The people have the right and duty to participate individually and
collectively in the planning and implementation of their health care”
• Australian Safety and Quality Framework for Health Care:
• describes a vision for safe and high quality care for all Australians
• safe and high quality care is: consumer centred | driven by information |
organised for safety
• Australian Safety and Quality Goals for Health Care:
• safety and quality challenges that would benefit from a coordinated
approach to improvement
• safety of care | appropriateness of care | partnering with consumers
• Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights:
• describes rights of people using the health system
• access | safety | respect | communication | participation | privacy |
comment
Rationale for the Standard

Evidence about the benefits of partnerships associated
with:
• experience of care
• business and operations of delivery health services
• work environment
• clinical quality and outcomes:
•
•
•
•
•
•
decreased mortality
lower readmission rates
fewer healthcare associated infections
reduced length of stay
improved adherence to treatment
improved functional status
Criteria to achieve the Standard
1.
Consumer partnership in service planning
• Governance structures are in place to form partnerships with
consumers and/or carers
2.
Consumer partnership in designing care
• Consumers and/or carers are supported by the health service
organisation to actively participate in the improvement of the
patient experience and patients health outcomes
3.
Consumer partnership in service measurement and evaluation
• Consumers and/or carers receive information on the health
service organisation’s performance and contribute to the
ongoing monitoring, measurement and evaluation of
performance for continuous quality
Core actions for Standard 2
2.4.1
Consumers and/or carers provide feedback on patient
information publications prepared by the health service
2.4.2
Action is taken to incorporate consumer and/or carers’
feedback into publications prepared by the health
service organisation for distribution to patients
2.6.1
Clinical leaders, senior managers and the workforce
access training on patient-centred care and the
engagement of individuals in their care
2.7.1
Consumers and the community are provided with
information that is meaningful and relevant on the
organisation’s safety and quality performance
Key concepts

Flexible standardisation:
• Standardisation of processes is an important way of
improving safety and quality
• Needs to reflect context of the health service
• Contextual issues that will affect the systems that are put
in place to meet Standard 2 include:
• administrative arrangements of the health service organisation –
public or private
• type and size of health service – small or large hospital, day
procedure service
• nature of local community served – demographics, geographic
spread etc
• jurisdictional requirements – eg legislation about consumer
advisory committees in Victoria
• availability of local consumer groups / individuals
Key concepts

What is a consumer?
• Patients, family members, carers etc who are currently or
have recently used the service
• Patients, family members, carers etc who have used the
service in the past
• Representatives from consumer groups, disease-based
groups etc, members of local community

Visiting medical officers in private hospitals are not
consumers

Including a range of consumers in partnership processes
ensures a range of different voices and views are
included in design, delivery and evaluation of health
services
Key concepts

What is partnering with consumers?
• Different terms – same concepts:
•
•
•
•
consumer partnerships
consumer / patient / community / citizen engagement
consumer participation
consumer-centred care / patient-centred care / patient and familycentred care
• Key principles:
• partnerships based on dignity and respect, information sharing,
participation and collaboration to the extent that consumers and
carers choose
• improving the health service by using the knowledge, skills and
experience of people who are using, have used or may use the
health service
Structure of Standard 2
2.5.1 Partnerships in the
design and redesign of
health services
2.2.2 Partnerships in
decision making about
safety and quality
Partnering with
consumers for
improvement
2.2.1 Partnerships in
strategic and
operation planning
2.8.1, 2.8.2 Partnerships in the
review of organisational safety
and quality performance and
development of improvements
2.9.1, 2.9.2 Partnerships in
the review of patient feedback
data and development of
improvements
2.1.1 2.1.2
Governance
and policy
framework
2.4.1, 2.4.2 Feedback from
consumers about patient
information publications
included in final
publications
2.3.1 Training for
consumers partnering
with the organisation
Information
Training
2.7.1 Information about
safety and quality
performance provided to
consumers and the
community
2.6.1 Training for the
workforce
2.6.2 Consumers
involved in training the
workforce
Overview of strategies to partner with
consumers

Examine existing arrangements – where possible build on what
already exists

Involve consumers as representatives on the board or existing
committees

Create / review an existing consumer advisory committee – can be
ongoing or for specific topics

“Critical friends” or other less formal groups – more ad hoc groups
that may be suitable for smaller organisations, or specialist areas

Holding planning days, forums or workshops with consumer
participants – also joint consumer/staff workshops

Consultation process to seek feedback – could be a large formal
processes, or small targeted consultations on discrete issues

Consider a range of technologies – such as online “virtual” group
Resources

Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health
Care:
• Safety and Quality Improvement Guide for Standard 2
• Additional material about Standard 2 to follow from the
Commission
• Discussion paper: Patient-centred care: Improving safety
and quality through partnerships with patients and
consumers (2011)
Resources

Jurisdictional programs:
• NSW – Partnering with patients
• Queensland – Consumer engagement framework
• Victoria – Doing it with us, not for us
• Western Australia – Patient first

National, state and territory based consumer
organisations

Disease-based consumer groups

Local consumer and community groups

Australian Institute for Patient and Family Centred Care
Resources

International organisations:
• Picker Institute / Picker Europe
• Institute for Family and Patient Centered Care
• Institute for Health Improvement
• Planetree
Summary

Purpose of the Standard is to improve outcomes and
experiences by supporting effective partnerships
between consumers, patients, carers, healthcare
providers and health service organisations at all levels of
healthcare provision, planning and evaluation

There is no one way of achieving this purpose –
strategies that are needed to establish and maintain
partnerships will depend on context

Health services need to demonstrate that they engage
consumers, and use the information they provide to
improve services