In October 2020, Vizientand the Institute for Patient- and Family-Centered Care (IPFCC) launched a national study regarding the involvement of patient and family advisors (PFAs) as “faculty” in undergraduate, graduate, resident, and inter-professional education. Michigan Medicine's Office of Patient Experience participated in this study to examine the prevalence and functioning of PFAs as educators by completing an online survey.
Until now, little has been known about the prevalence of PFAs serving as educators, structures to support these roles or the effect of their involvement. The learnings from this study can assist health care organizations in their efforts to engage PFAs in educational activities. This study has brought to light top performing organizations from which others can learn as well as foundational evidence to measure in future studies. Michigan Medicine was recognized as one of the top five performers in the country for patient and family engagement.
Thank you to all our patient and family advisors for their continued support of our organization and working to improve the experience for all our patients and families.