Are you partnering with consumers to co-design, co-develop, or co-create services?

Louise Gustafsson, Editor-in-Chief, Australian Occupational Therapy Journal

The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care’s Partnering with Consumers Standard (https:// www.safetyandquality.gov.au/standards/ nsqhs-standards/partnering-consumersstandard) positions that the people who access occupational therapy services should be involved in planning at three levels: at the individual level in the planning their own care; at the level of service, department, or program planning; and at the governance and policy levels of health care organisations.

Effective partnering with consumers requires absolute power sharing, committed leadership, and continuing actions that prioritise the voice of the consumer in all discussions. Equally, effective partnering with consumers requires multiple methods in response to the contexts and the characteristics of the consumer group such as surveys, focus groups, advisory groups or consumer representatives on working parties.

The International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) developed the IAP2 Public Participation Spectrum to outline five levels of partnering ranging from Inform (information shared with consumers about decisions) through to Empower (consumers are involved in all stages of the consultation and are responsible for the final decision). You can read more about these on the IAP2 website (https://www.iap2.org.au). The adjoining graphic outlines practical examples of the five levels of the IAP2 Public Participation Spectrum for a problem that was faced by many in recent years – how to continue to deliver an occupational therapy service during a pandemic.

The Australian Occupational Therapy Journal published a special issue focused on partnering with consumers in care, research, and education in December 2022 (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/ toc/14401630/2022/69/6). All articles are available to OTA members when you log in via the OTA website members area. Collectively the articles included within this issue offer insights into how occupational therapists can, or are, effectively partnering with consumers to enhance outcomes in education, clinical practice and research. A synthesis of some key recommendations (Chapman et al., 2022; Cox et al., 2022; Liddle et al., 2022; Pozniak et al., 2022) about effective partnering include:

1. Transparency: a. Be clear about agreed roles and expectations b. Commit to governance processes and the development of operational documents c. Agree on the value and purpose of the partnership

2. Communication: a. Be consistent and use person-first language b. Ask and don’t assume how people would like to partner, their strengths and needs c. Continue to check-in as situations change d. Capable facilitation is important to ensure that all perspectives and voices are empowered and shared

3. Accessibility and inclusion: a. Adopt flexible ways of working b. Engage empowering processes and structures c. Be open to unexpected barriers and tensions d. Adapt your methods/ approaches as required e. Be prepared to challenge “risk averse” institutions

Inform

You inform the clients of the risks and benefits that you and your team have considered, the alternatives or solutions generated, and the final decision about how you will continue to provide a service.

You inform the clients as above but add a step of consultation to ask for their input before making a final decision. You share with the clients how their input influenced the final decision.

Consult

Involve

Collaborate

You involve clients earlier to understand their wishes and concerns regarding risks and benefits, ensuring that these are reflected in the generation of alternatives and solutions. You share with the clients how their input influenced the generation of the alternatives, solutions, and final decision.

You collaborate with the clients from the beginning of the process including them in the analysis of the risks and benefits, generation of alternatives, and possible solutions/decisions. You include their input in the final decision as much as possible or practical.

Empower

As per collaborate but the clients are empowered to be responsible for the final decision.

There is increasing impetus for occupational therapy education, clinical practice and research to demonstrate how consumers have been involved in the planning, development, and delivery of services. You can start small and at any level of the IAP2 – but the time to start partnering with consumers is now. The articles included within the special issue of the Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, the Partnering with Consumers Standard, and the information included on the IAP2 website are examples of some of the excellent resources available to support you and your team.

References can be viewed by scanning the QR code