Patient Engagement Affinity Group Sessions (February-April 2025)
PHMI has designated a foundational competency across four Populations of Focus to be, “Engage patients served by your practice to validate any of your proposed process improvements and propose alternative methods to improve quality in your focus area." There are several strategies we’d like to share and build with you, that can range from seeking input from a designated number of patients during clinic visits to soliciting more formal and ongoing engagement through working with a patient/family advisor or your CHC’s Patient/Family Council. We drew on resources from implementation guides which outline approaches associated with systematic decrease in inequities.
Learning Objectives
- Advance your team’s competency in engaging patients in QI/PHMI processes.
- Accomplish the needed steps to validate this foundational competency.
- Define meaningful patient engagement strategies to inform process improvement strategies.
- Explore how patient engagement can serve as a tool to advance health equity.
- Exchange insights and experiences with peers.
- Explore actionable change ideas that can be tested.
Session 1: February 11, 2025
Session 1 of the Patient Engagement Affinity Group introduced the series learning objectives, implementation timeline, and PHMI’s three levels of patient engagement. The session helped health center teams select a level of patient engagement, begin mapping Action Period 1 activities, and consider how patient input can validate QI/PHMI processes and advance health equity.
Session 2: March 11, 2025
Session 2 of the Patient Engagement Affinity Group focused on engaging patients to validate quality improvement processes. The session includes patient engagement learning objectives, levels of patient engagement, patient council best practices, a Petaluma Health Center bright spot, and breakout discussions to help health centers identify resources and approaches for Action Period 2.
Session 3: April 8, 2025
Session 3 of the Patient Engagement Affinity Group focused on small group discussion, health center report-out challenges, and reflection on next steps for validating patient engagement processes. The session revisits foundational competency validation criteria, including how patient input is obtained, collected, integrated, and documented.
Session 4: May 13, 2025
Session 4 of the Patient Engagement Affinity Group focused on patient engagement strategies and feedback collection methods in healthcare settings, with participants sharing their experiences and challenges in implementing various approaches. Discussions covered topics such as point-of-care surveys, key informant interviews, and the use of technology to gather patient feedback, as well as the importance of closing the feedback loop and communicating changes to patients and staff.