Members from a range of Canterbury’s health consumer groups connected face-to-face last month, in the first stage of a plan to strengthen connection across groups and amplify the consumer voice across health and wellbeing services.

The hui (meeting) provided an opportunity for consumers to hear about the national picture for consumer engagement and HQSC Consumer Engagement Marker, learn about the new role of Director of Lived Experience – family/ whānau for Te Whatu Ora (TWO) Waitaha Canterbury Mental Health Services, and find out about CCN’s new approach to co-designing programmes and services in partnership with whānau – Kia Kotahi Partnership in Design. 

The hui, jointly organised by CCN and Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury, marked the first time consumers from Canterbury’s groups have been brought together in this way. 

“It’s been a strange couple of years. There haven’t been many opportunities to meet face-to-face, and many areas of work that consumers are involved in have slowed or been paused as health system staff were redirected to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic,” says CCN Consumer Forum Chair, Emma Jeffery.

“Combined with bigger changes as we move into a new health system, consumers are considering our place in the reforms and looking for opportunities to share our voice and make a real impact for the benefit of our wider communities.  

“As well as getting a better understanding of the bigger picture, we shared kai (food) and whakawhanaungatanga (the process of establishing relationships) which felt like a positive first step in understanding who is who in the consumer world and how we can work together to amplify the consumer and whānau voice across our health system.”

A series of hui is scheduled for 2023, alongside work to map Waitaha/Canterbury health-related consumer groups to understand group’s roles, memberships, and reporting lines and how this can support the national approach in line with the consumer code of expectations. 

Find out more on the CCN website consumer page.