In episode 35 of The HQ Podcast, we delve into the crucial relationship between health research and citizens (e.g. patients and families) who partner in this critical work. We explore the invaluable insights and contributions that “patient partners” bring to the table and how their involvement shapes the health research and many other healthcare decisions we all depend upon. Our guests, three exceptional leaders who are patient partners from different regions of Canada, share their experiences and perspectives, shedding light on the intricate dynamics of this collaborative process including what effective patient partnership needs to look like, how we can achieve this through approaches like relational-equity, and what value it brings to us all.
Tune in as we explore what it is to be a patient partner, the enablers and barriers of becoming a patient partner, and examine the transformative effects of patient-oriented research on clinical care. This is a conversation you won’t want to miss!
About Beth Ciavaglia
Beth is a physiotherapist who works in Quality and Risk in long-term care. Prior to that, she worked in acute care for 18 years. She is the Chair of the Ontario Institute of Cancer Research’s Patient and Family Advisory Council, a Patient Ambassador with the Canadian Institute of Health Research and sits as a Director for Arnprior Regional Health. A four-year breast cancer survivor, she is excited for the ongoing cancer discoveries that will not only extend life but most importantly, support quality of life.
About Bev Pomeroy
Bev Pomeroy is a Patient Public Engagement Specialist and an uninvited settler-person on the shared, traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Snuneymuxw territory known as its colonial name Gabriola Island, BC. Bev has a particular interest in Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and has co-developed a Trauma & Resiliency Informed Practice program for Research and Evaluation; a strengths-based approach to Patient-Oriented Research. Bev landed in patient-oriented research after her daughter, Sophia, passed away in 2017 from a rare, complex chronic condition at the age of 16. They sit on the board of BC Patient Safety Quality Council Oversight & Advisory, Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research Evidence Alliance, and the Canadian Association for Health Services and Policy Research.
About Brenda Andreas
With aging comes the need for primary care to manage chronic conditions. When you live in a small rural isolated community, access to primary care has many challenges and this how Brenda became interested in patient engagement and in patient-oriented research in primary care.
Currently as the co-chair of the CPCRN Patient Council, Brenda has help positions which include co-principal applicant on the CIHR funded grant for the CPCRN, and member of both the Executive and Steering committees. Brenda has been involved as a co-applicant, knowledge user, and co-investigator on funded patient-oriented research since 2017. She has participated in reviewing grant submissions, developing training curriculum, measurement tools, and knowledge translation activities where she has collaborated on the design, delivery, and evaluation of these projects.
Brenda is also an active patient partner within the Saskatchewan Health Authority as she is a member of the SHA Board Quality & Safely Committee, the Patient Family Leadership Council, the Accreditation Oversight Committee and the Patient Centered Measurement working group.
Other health system partner organizations that Brenda partners with include Accreditation Canada (Patient Surveyor), USASK Behavioral Ethics Board (community member), Health Care Excellence Canada (Faculty member of the Virtual Care Collaborative) and with University of Manitoba College of Nursing (supporting curriculum for 7110).
With lived experience as both a patient and a researcher, Brenda focuses her research on bringing connection, community, and relational equity to impact evidence based best practices within the health care system. To her, this means building trusting relationships and to advocate for the voice and visibility of our vulnerable underserved populations.
Helpful Links
Beth Ciavaglia | LinkedIn: Click Here
Bev Pomeroy | LinkedIn: Click Here
Brenda Andreas | LinkedIn: Click Here
The Canadian Institutes of Health Research | Website: Click Here
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