Johns Hopkins Medicine Patient and Family Advisory Council Collaborative
Representatives of the JHM PFAC Collaborative, including Vicki Stearn, second from right, celebrate accomplishments of the Suburban Hospital PFA.
The Johns Hopkins Medicine (JHM) Patient and Family Advisory Council (PFAC) Collaborative, originally known as the Patient- and Family-Centered Care Clinical Community (PFCC-CC), is comprised of representatives from PFACs throughout JHM as well as JHM patient experience leaders. The collaborative members meet monthly to share information on how to best represent the patient and family voice at their Johns Hopkins member organizations.
According to PFA Vicki Stearn from Suburban Hospital, immediate past co-chair of the collaborative, and PFA Lisa Rasmussen from The Johns Hopkins Hospital, current collaborative co-chair, the member organization PFACs and the PFAC Collaborative have a threefold mission (see the November/December 2023 issue of Dome):
- to bring up issues that advisers experience as patients and family members so the system can effectively address and improve policies, procedures and methods of providing care
- to work with the health system to make it more patient-centered and family-centered
- to serve as a forum for JHM leaders and others to bring ideas, projects and patient-facing materials to advisers for their input
The collaborative is led by both a staff member and a volunteer PFA co-chair. Participants usually include two or three representatives from each JHM organization, plus Steve Meth, new vice president and chief patient experience officer for JHM, and JHM staff.
Recent topics discussed by the collaborative include visitation policies, the introduction of virtual nursing and patient access/appointment scheduling. Members share innovative practices and discuss common challenges.
Suburban Hospital has four PFAC representatives who are active and vocal participants in the collaborative: Vicki Stearn, Kris Hakanson (director of patient and family experience and a Suburban PFAC staff co-chair), Jean Hochron (Suburban PFAC PFA co-chair) and Barbara Kahl (PFA).
The JHM PFAC Collaborative celebrated Stearn’s accomplishments as she became immediate past co-chair after serving since 2017. The collaborative acknowledged and celebrated her passion, advocacy and commitment, and the Suburban Hospital PFAC is grateful for Stearn’s dedication and thoughtful, strategic and tireless leadership.
More information about PFACs at Johns Hopkins Medicine can be found at: hopkinsmedicine.org/patient-care/patients-visitors/patient-family-advisory-councils.