Clinician: Associate Professor Niall Corcoran
PARTNERSHIP: Consumer and researcher partnership
We have a commitment to capture the voice of consumers, to listen to the unique and crucial points of view that consumers bring and incorporate these into decisions that shape strategy and program development.
Our consumer engagement strategy guides integration of the consumer voice. Incorporating the Cancer Australia’s National Framework for Consumer Engagement in Cancer Control as a foundation, the mechanisms of engagement are defined across five tiers of participation: Informing, Consulting, Involving, Partnership, and Consumer-Led.
The VCCC Alliance Model of Consumer Engagement draws upon the consumer involvement capability model of Cancer Australia and outlines a range of mechanisms for engagement tailored for our diverse areas of work. The five tiers reflect levels of participation to guide training and skill development, communication, and remuneration. In practice, any one program can utilise multiple levels of engagement depending on the specific purpose and phase of work.
Download a copy of the model of consumer engagement diagram.
Informing
Consulting
Involving
Partnership
Consumer-led
Advisory committee
Cancer Consumer Advisory Committee is a standing committee of the VCCC Alliance Board. Members are drawn from, and representative of alliance member community advisory committees with additional expert members. The committee has an independent consumer Chair who is a member of the VCCC Alliance distributed leadership team.
Steering and working groups
Consumers are members across the Strategic Program Plan steering and working groups.
Event participation
Consumer inclusion is a requirement for all VCCC Alliance-sponsored events. Participation can be as co-chairs, panel members, opening and closing speeches, oral and poster presentations.
Skill development
The VCCC Alliance conducts skill development courses and training for consumers, researchers, health professionals and program managers.
Lived experiences
Consumer voices are solicited as part of all program development and implementation to ensure the reality of lived experiences remains central.