Patient and Family Advisory Councils at The Johns Hopkins Hospital
At The Johns Hopkins Hospital, we are committed to partnering with patients, families, and caregivers throughout their healthcare experience. There are eight patient and family advisory councils (PFACs) at The Johns Hopkins Hospital with over 200 members that include patients, family members and hospital staff. Each PFAC meets for two hours in the evening, typically once a month. All meetings are currently held via Zoom. We welcome members who represent diversity with respect to culture, race, religion, age, sexual preference and socioeconomic and educational backgrounds.
Patient Advisor Role and Responsibilities
Patients and their families are knowledgeable members of the care team and can offer unique perspectives and valuable feedback about their experience at a hospital. Learn more about what it’s like serving on a PFAC.
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- Promote respectful, effective partnerships between patients, families, and clinicians.
- Increase understanding and cooperation between patients, families, and staff.
- Transform the culture towards patient- and family-centered care.
- Improve quality, patient safety, and patient health outcomes.
- Establish a link between the hospital and the community at large.
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- Share healthcare experience with doctors, staff and other PFAC members.
- Participate in group discussions to talk about ideas for how our healthcare organizations can improve care, quality, safety, and services.
- Provide insight from the patient and family perspective about policies, care practices, and patient education materials.
- Identify patient and family needs and concerns.
- Serve on subcommittees and workgroups to help bring the patient and family perspective to these efforts.
- Encourage and support patient-centered care across the institution.
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The philosophy of patient- and family-centered care focuses on:
- Respect for patients' values, preferences, and needs.
- Coordination of care for more efficiency.
- Comfort and emotional support for mental health.
- Information, communication, and education.
- Involvement of family and friends.
How to Join
If you or someone you love received care at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and have ideas to help improve care for patients and families, we invite you to join one of our councils as a patient and family advisor. Your perspective matters to us and will help us improve the care we provide to all. The application process involves submitting an application, participating in an interview and completing the volunteer recruitment process
To join the Teen and Children's Council, please fill out this application.
To join any of the other councils, please use this link:
For more information, email us or call 443-287-0110.
Discover more opportunities at The Johns Hopkins Hospital’s Office of Volunteer Services.
PFACs at The Johns Hopkins Hospital
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The Adult Patient & Family Advisory Council advocates on behalf of patients and families of The Johns Hopkins Hospital for the provision of the highest quality of patient- and family-centered care. The Council infuses the voice of the patient into every aspect of the hospital so that all patients receive optimum patient-centered care.
Council meets monthly on the first Wednesday of the month.
As a council member, you may expect to be involved in projects and activities such as:
- Providing feedback on signage related to fall risk and other hospital initiatives
- Participating in training of new hires and first-year medical students regarding patient-centered care
- Collaborating with revenue cycle operation on improving MyChart messaging and experience related to billing and cost estimates
- Assisting with the design and implementation of the visitor welcoming system through review of prototypes, messaging and serving on sub-committees.
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The Pediatric FAC aims to promote a culture of patient- and family-centered care at Johns Hopkins Children's Center. The council provides resources and guidance to strengthen collaboration, communication, and mutual respect between the healthcare team, patients and families to achieve the highest quality outcomes and care possible. Parents or legal guardians whose child has experienced care at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center as well as hospital staff members are welcome to apply for membership.
The council meets on the third Wednesday of each month, with the exception of August and December.
As a council member, you may expect to be involved in projects and activities such as:
- Helping with fundraising efforts, including raising funds to alleviate parking expenses for newly diagnosed oncology families
- Assisting in creation and implementation of programs such as Family Support Program, Parents Supporting Parents Program and Family Meal Program
- Participating in environmental and patient experience audits of the hospital spaces to review signage, cleanliness, safety, workflows, etc.
- Helping with organization and maintenance of the documents packet that patients receive upon admission.
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The Teen and Children’s Council provides a way for adolescents who receive care at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center to provide insight and feedback on their hospital experiences. This offers an opportunity for the healthcare team to listen to their perspectives and incorporate them into patient care. The Teen and Children’s Council also strives to give back to patients of the Children’s Center through fundraising and hosting special events. All patients and siblings served by Johns Hopkins Children’s Center and any hospital staff members are welcome to apply for membership.
The council meets monthly on the second Tuesday of each month.
As a council member, you may expect to be involved in projects and activities such as:
- Participating in the white coat ceremony for medical students
- Planning and hosting a homecoming dance for former patients, as well as other events
- Providing feedback on MyChart initiatives
- Offering a teen's perspective on a variety of patient experiences that may include food options, signage and wayfinding, patient communications, etc.
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The Emergency Medicine PFAC aims to improve the quality of patient- and family-centered care and the overall experience for the patients and visitors of The Johns Hopkins Hospital's Emergency Department. If you would like more information on the council, please email [email protected].
The council meets monthly on the second Wednesday of each month.
As a member of the council, you may expect to be involved in projects and activities such as:
- Advising on improving the waiting room experience with the focus on patient comfort
- Collaborating on a system for delivery of updates to patients via text messaging
- Designing brochures and similar materials to help patients know what to expect in the emergency department
- Participating in the new hire process for new emergency department employees
- Advising on the ways to inform patients about relevant clinical trials
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The PFAC at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center (SKCCC) is dedicated to promoting safety, quality and optimal patient experience for the patients and visitors of the center. We believe that patient voice helps shape essential decisions regarding the patient experience from diagnosis through survivorship.
The council meets on the first Thursday of each month.
As a member of the council, you may expect to be involved in projects and activities such as:
- Advising on peer-to-peer mentoring programs for SKCCC patients
- Advising on and advocating for better food and nutrition options for cancer patients at Johns Hopkins
- Providing feedback on patient education materials and the best ways to disseminate them
- Evaluating signage in the SKCCC facilities
- Serving on the Maryland State Council on Cancer Control
Each month, members hear from a variety of speakers who update the council on developments at SKCCC. Many council members also participate in the decision-making process at the SKCCC by serving on committees and workgroups outside of the regular meetings.
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The Ambulatory PFAC aims to create an ideal patient experience at the Levi Watkins, Jr, MD, Outpatient Center, with the focus on four components of an outpatient visit:
- Pre-visit and scheduling
- Arrival and check-in
- Visit, treatment and check-out
- Post-visit follow-up
The group meets on the third Thursday of every month.
As a member of this council, you may expect to be involved in projects and activities such as:
- Planning for the Johns Hopkins Drug Take-Back Day.
- Advising on usability and features of various technologies, including MyChart and the Johns Hopkins Visitor Welcoming System.
- Advising on policies related to patient safety, billing, chaperones and related topics.
- Collaborating on patient-centered videos such as this one.
- Helping physicians in training practice important patient communication skills.
- Advising on wayfinding, signage and parking for visitors to the outpatient center.
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The Fetal Therapy Medicine Council aims to improve patient experience and broaden outreach for the Johns Hopkins Center for Fetal Therapy. Meetings are held monthly.
As a member of this council, you may expect to be involved in projects and activities such as:
- Assisting in the planning and implementation of the center's annual picnic
- Contributing to newsletters and other patient-focused communications, including social media
- Helping establish a peer-to-peer program to connect current and former patients, creating a community of support
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The Center for Transgender & Gender Expansive Health PFAC was established in 2023 in an effort to improve the patient experience and broaden outreach for the center. Meetings are held every other month but may increase in frequency as the PFAC grows.