Patient & Family Advisory Council: Terms of Reference, Recruitment & Meeting Toolkit

Welcome

Use this template to create a Patient & Family Advisory Council (PFAC) that genuinely helps design, evaluate, and improve services. The material below is a practical starter pack you can copy, adapt to local policy, and operationalize. It preserves the PFAC's advisory role while making sure members are respected, supported, and able to influence real projects.

Purpose (Draft TOR)

The Patient & Family Advisory Council provides a structured forum where patients, family members, caregivers, and staff collaborate to improve care experience, design services, and identify opportunities for safer, more compassionate, and more equitable care.

Objectives:

• Offer lived-experience perspectives on policies, programs, environments and improvement projects.
• Co-design patient-facing materials, processes and spaces to improve usability and safety.
• Review and advise on specific improvement projects or initiatives.
• Help the organization measure patient-centered outcomes and identify priorities.

Scope and Decision-Making

PFAC is advisory: recommendations are documented and routed through defined decision pathways. The council can:

• Review materials, workflows and patient-facing programs and recommend changes.
• Prioritize topics for advisory review within an agreed intake process.
• Escalate system or safety concerns to the appropriate clinical or governance committee.

Decision boundaries: the PFAC does not replace clinical governance, regulatory approvals, or operational decision rights. Where quick operational or safety changes are needed, staff may act immediately and report back to the PFAC.

Membership

Recommended composition (example):

• 6–12 patient/family members representing diverse care experiences and populations served
• 2–3 staff partners (quality, patient experience, clinical representative)
• 1 staff liaison to coordinate logistics, agenda and follow-up

Member terms: staggered 1–2 year terms, with option to renew once. Aim for diversity across age, language, cultural background, service line experience, and caregiver roles.

Roles & Responsibilities

• Chair or Co-chairs: set meeting tone, work with staff liaison on agenda.
• Staff Liaison: organizes meetings, records minutes, tracks follow-up and ensures PFAC input is incorporated into project governance.
• Members: attend meetings, prepare for topic reviews, provide lived-experience input, and participate in subgroups as needed.

Recruitment Scripts (Examples)

Use these as starting points for outreach:

Email / Letter to a Prospective Member

Dear [Name],
We are inviting patients and family members to join our Patient & Family Advisory Council. The PFAC meets [monthly / bi-monthly], focuses on improving patient experience and safety, and advises on specific projects. We value lived experience and will support your participation (training, honorarium, accessibility accommodations). If you’re interested or would like to discuss, please reply to [contact].

Phone / In-person Recruitment Script

Hi [Name], I’m [staff]. We’re building a PFAC to help shape how we deliver care. We’d love your perspective on [topic]. Meetings are [time/frequency]. We’ll provide an orientation, cover reasonable expenses, and make sure meetings are accessible. Would you consider joining?

Onboarding Checklist (Starter)

1. Welcome packet: TOR, contact list, meeting schedule, recent agendas/minutes, privacy/confidentiality expectations.
2. Orientation session: purpose, roles, how PFAC input is used, practical meeting norms.
3. Accessibility needs & supports: interpreter, transport, remote connection instructions, large-print documents.
4. Compensation & reimbursement process explained.
5. Assign a buddy or staff point-person for the first two meetings.

Sample Meeting Agenda (90 minutes)

1. Welcome, land acknowledgements, and brief check-in (10 min)
2. Approve minutes & review action log (10 min)
3. Feature topic or project review (30–40 min) — materials shared in advance
4. Quick updates from staff & members (10 min)
5. Priorities, next steps & assignments (10 min)
6. Close & parking lot review (5–10 min)

Facilitation Tips

• Share materials at least 5 business days before the meeting with a plain-language summary and 2–3 questions you want input on.
• Use one facilitator and one note-taker. Rotate co-chair responsibilities with patient/family members when appropriate.
• Ask open, focused questions and invite examples. Avoid jargon; explain acronyms briefly.
• Create a safe conversational environment: set confidentiality norms, remind participants that all perspectives are valued.
• Use breakout pairs for quieter members and invite written feedback after meetings for those who prefer it.

How PFAC Input Enters Projects

Recommend an intake and feedback loop the organization can follow:

1. Project intake form indicates whether PFAC review is requested (and why).
2. Staff liaison schedules topic and provides concise materials and explicit questions.
3. PFAC provides formal recommendations; staff records a response that describes how recommendations were accepted, adapted, declined, or deferred and why.
4. Project owner provides a follow-up report at a later meeting showing changes made and measured impact where possible.

Templates & Tools (to copy)

• Meeting minutes template (Date, Attendees, Agenda items, Recommendations, Actions, Owner, Due date)
• Project intake checklist (Project name, staff owner, ask for PFAC, materials, timeline)
• Member confidentiality & consent statement
• Accessibility & accommodation request form

Compensation & Accessibility Guidance

Compensation demonstrates respect and reduces barriers to participation. Options include honoraria, gift cards, travel reimbursement, childcare support, and paid time for caregivers. Communicate compensation clearly during recruitment and onboarding. Offer remote attendance and ensure materials are available in accessible formats and preferred languages.

Measuring Impact and Continuous Improvement

Track simple metrics such as number of recommendations made, percent implemented, time-to-response, member diversity and retention, and member satisfaction. Use an annual reflection to refresh membership, review TOR, and adjust responsibilities.

Confidentiality & Conflict of Interest

Provide a short confidentiality statement and a simple conflict-of-interest disclosure on onboarding forms. Make clear when members may be asked to step out of discussions involving personal care matters that could breach privacy.

Next Steps & Suggested Use

Copy and adapt these sections into your local governance templates. Start small—pilot one working group or project—and build trust by demonstrating how PFAC recommendations lead to visible changes.

Attachments / Suggested Files to Create

• Recruitment email and phone script (editable)
• Onboarding slide deck
• Project intake form (short)
• Meeting minutes and action-log spreadsheet
• Accessibility & compensation policy summary

For better usability, consider turning the recruitment script, intake form, meeting minutes and onboarding checklist into interactive forms so responses, member records and action tracking are saved and searchable.