St. Francis Medical Center - Patient & Family Advisory Council for Quality & Safety

Advisory Council Membership

The St. Francis Medical Center Patient and Family Advisory Council for Quality and Safety is comprised of patients who have received care at the medical center within the past three years or are a family member of such an individual. Members offer insights and input to help us provide care and services that are based on patient- and family-identified needs rather than the assumptions of team members. They help to identify what the medical center is doing well and areas that need improvement. Advisors help us move beyond the “what is wrong” stage to developing effective solutions.

Roles and responsibilities of advisory council members

Council Coordinator

St, Francis Medical Center’s Patient Advocacy Specialist also serves as the Liaison to the Patient and Family Advisory Council. Responsibilities include:

• Oversee and work with advisors
• Supports the council and its members
• Helps ensure council activities are meaningfully integrated into changes and improvements within the hospital
• Serves as the contact for other team members seeking to be included on the council’s agenda
• Attends council meetings, facilitates interactions, and reports feedback to medical center’s management

Patient and family members

Patient and family council members attend meetings and actively participate by sharing their perspectives, ideas and feedback. They are expected to complete orientation, sign privacy agreements and other requirements as indicated by the medical center. Team members of St. Francis Medical Center attend council meetings depending on meeting topics of discussion and make time to implement council initiatives.

Time commitments

The Patient and Family Advisory Council for Quality and Safety meets once a quarter. Meetings typically are 90 minutes to two hours in length. Time commitments outside of meetings are generally two to three hours per month. Patient and family advisory council members serve 3-year terms, although membership may continue longer on a case-by-case basis.

To be eligible to serve on the Patient and Family Advisory Council for Quality and Safety one must:

• Have been a patient or a family member of a patient at St. Francis Medical Center within the past three years.
• Have the ability to share insight about experience in a way in which others can learn.
• Exhibit values consistent with those of St. Francis Medical Center and the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System.
• Demonstrate suitable interpersonal skills.
• Speak honestly and comfortably.
• Be able to share a story in a meaningful way.

In addition, council members should:

• Be able to see beyond personal experience.
• Show concern for more than one issue or agenda.
• Possess good listening skills.
• Respect others.
• Be comfortable in a group.
• Interact well with many different types of people.
• Be able to work in partnership.
• Want to truly make a difference.