Roundtable: Moving from consumer engagement to consumer leadership

Consumer engagement in the decision making process is not only significant for the HCH project, but also demonstrates to consumers that their voice and participation provides a critical perspective to the work and can have an impact on decisions that affect their lives. These experiences can empower consumers in their personal growth where they may choose to advocate beyond internal quality improvement and lead the movement for broader social change in their communities. This engagement provides opportunities to enhance the leadership and advocacy skills our consumers already have including effective communication and critical thinking; yet there are also challenges we must mitigate including barriers to consumer involvement, and the need to address underlying assumptions and power dynamics. This roundtable will invite discussion of ways that consumers and staff have interacted with these opportunities and challenges, and offer the chance to learn from one another's experiences.