Engaging donors, donor families, advocates, patients, recipients, and caregivers and listening to those with lived experiences within the health care system is immensely valuable. These voices provide insights to illuminate aspects of the care that work for patients and their loved ones and can help to identify those areas where improvements could be made.
As partners in the system, Canadian Blood Services is involved in collaborating with donation and transplantation programs across the country to develop clinical guidelines and other system improvements. These initiatives can be strengthened, however, with direct, meaningful conversation with patients, recipients, families, and caregivers, to ensure what is developed reflects real-life needs and improves care. Canadian Blood Services has outlined its commitment to engagement in its Corporate Strategy.
In recent years, the Organ & Tissue Donation & Transplantation (OTDT) program has engaged patients and families in several areas of work, including having representation at guideline development meetings and forums. As part of OTDT’s commitment to the corporation’s strategic focus on engagement and its leadership in the national donation and transplantation systems, the program seeks to integrate engagement efforts more systematically into its committees and initiatives such that engagement becomes an additional pillar of our work.
Next steps
For more information contact otdt@blood.ca