Quality of Care photo of patient and staff

Patients & visitors

Becoming a consumer partner

Title

Becoming a consumer partner

Help us shape and improve our services

Austin Health includes consumer partners in important decision making about our services. Consumer partners are volunteers who have experience:

using services provided by Austin Health, or
supporting a person who has used services provided by Austin Health.

If you would like to share your thoughts and ideas on how our services can be improved, apply to become a consumer partner.

Who we are looking for

We are looking for people who:

can provide patient, consumer, carer and/or community perspectives, not just personal experience
are interested in improving patient care
can positively work together with health professionals
are 18 years of age or over.

We welcome and encourage applications from people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds, people with disabilities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people and people from the LGBTIQ+ community.

Volunteer walking and smiling with a patient

What you will be doing

As a consumer partner:

you may be involved in discussions to improve the services we provide at Austin Health. This could include being a member on a committee or reviewing how we do things
we will discuss your interests and previous experience, to help us find the most appropriate and meaningful areas to participate in
there will be opportunities to be involved onsite (pending COVID restrictions) as well as virtually.

Ways you can participate

We know that consumer participation leads to improvements in the quality, safety and accessibility of our services. Your involvement can help us to meet the needs of the community we serve.

You can participate in many different ways, such as:

becoming a member of a committee
joining a project working group
providing guidance on training staff or in patient simulations
supporting new consumer partners
collecting feedback from patients about their experience
providing feedback in focus groups or surveys
reviewing patient information and providing feedback (including website, written and video content).

We appreciate that your time is valuable. You can let us know the level of involvement you are comfortable with.

How to apply

To apply please complete our consumer partner application form.

When you apply

In your application, please consider the following:

your past involvement with Austin Health.
why you are excited about being a Consumer Partner with us.
your experiences within the healthcare system.
how you are connected to the community and any professional groups.
the skills you have that could benefit you as a Consumer Partner.

After you apply

Please email a copy of your resume and your Flu/COVID vaccination certificates to consumerpartners@austin.org.au.

We will carefully review your application and get back to you within about two weeks.

We are looking forward to learning more about you and your interest in joining Austin Health as a Consumer Partner!

Community Advisory Committee

The Austin Health Community Advisory Committee (CAC) is an advisory committee to the Austin Health Board which operates under the Victorian Public Health Services Community Advisory Committee guidelines.

The committee play a critical role in assisting our health service to include consumer and community views in our operations, planning and evaluation. The CAC also advocates to the Board on behalf of the community.

We are not currently recruiting consumer partners, but we look forward to hearing from you in the near future. Please check back regularly for updates on when we will be accepting applications.

Find out more about our Community Advisory Committee (CAC).