Aboriginal Health

Community Engagement

Terms of Reference - ACHAC - Guiding Principles

VCH and Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee will be guided by the following principles as they design and carry out their mandate across the health region.

Timelines:
The Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee will be given sufficient time, whenever possible, to provide meaningful involvement. There will be a balance struck between ensuring appropriate timelines for involvement and the need for timely decision-making.

Advisory Consultation:
The Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee will be consulted about health plans and services in an advisory capacity and not in a decision-making capacity.

Clarity and Information Sharing:
The ACHAC will be provided information about the topic for consultation, and about the opportunities and constraints involved in VCH making decisions.

Fair, Transparent and Legitimate:
As much as possible, the ACHAC will be engaged and/or consulted prior to key system decisions being made; engagement/consultation will be focused on real opportunities to influence decisions. Where VCH decisions are driven or constrained by external forces (e.g. other levels of government, human resource issues), this will be communicated to the Committee.

Accountability:
The effectiveness of VCH community engagement strategies and the performance of the ACHAC will be evaluated, resulting in improvements based on evaluation findings. VCH staff and management will be responsible for informing the Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee on how their input was used in decision-making.

Balance of Diverse Inputs:
Community input is valued as one of many factors in decision-making.

Variety of Consultation Methods:
Different methods will be used to gather community input in order to broaden opportunities for participation, e.g. focus groups, questionnaires, town hall meetings, program advisory committees etc.

ACHAC – Purpose

The purpose of Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee is to assist VCH in fulfilling the organizational mandate, directed by the provincial Ministry of Health Planning, to “establish mechanisms for ensuring public input throughout the Region” as well as to achieve VCH’s goal of community engagement.

ACHAC – Function

The specific functions of the Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee are as follows:

• Provide a meaningful input, feedback and recommendations to the Vice-President, Health Service Integration, Executive Director of Primary Health Care, Vice-President, Employee and Customer Engagement, VCH Senior Executive Team and the VCH Aboriginal Coordinating Committee on regional:
• Health Planning
• Relationship and Partnership Development
• Communication Strategies
• Evaluation, Policy and Program Development
• Funding Programs such as Aboriginal Health Initiative
• Identify and bring forward to VCH issues of concern to the Aboriginal community for VCH consideration and/or action.
• Assist in developing and implementing diverse community engagement strategies by:
• Linking VCH staff with key stakeholder groups and community organizations
• Participating in planning and carrying out community engagement processes such as community forums, focus groups, etc.
• Recommending participants for VCH working groups and standing committees or assigning a representative from the CHAC to participate
• Evaluate the effectiveness of community engagement strategies and provide recommendations for improvements.  

ACHAC – Membership

The ACAC Co-Chairs and VCH staff will submit names to the VCH Executive Officer (CEO) for appointment to the Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee. The Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee will consist of fifteen members, seven (7) members will be from the Urban Vancouver Aboriginal community, seven (7) members will be from First Nations communities within VCH, and one (1) position for an Elder.

• The priority is to have seven (7) Urban Vancouver Aboriginal Community representatives distributed as follows:
• Aboriginal organizations – 4 representatives
• Community members at large – 2 representatives
• Metis – 1 representative

The Urban Vancouver Aboriginal community representatives will be responsible for reporting to the general meetings of Vancouver Aboriginal Council and its portfolios on a quarterly basis.

• The priority is to have seven (7) VCH First Nations community representatives distributed a follows:
• Coast-Garibaldi – 5 representatives
• Vancouver-Richmond-North Shore – 2 representatives
• The VCH First Nations community representatives will be responsible for reporting to their respective community on a quarterly basis.

Except for the community members at large, a letter must be submitted from their sponsoring organizations/community stating that they support the application to the Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee. However, if selected the Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee Member will not represent that organization/community but brings the perspective of the Aboriginal or First Nations community as a whole.

The Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee will meet 4 to 6 times annually. Recognizing the value of discussion and collective planning across the region, VCH will host two joint CHAC meetings per year.

Members of the Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee are appointed for a two (2) year term, with the opportunity to renew membership for an additional two (2) year term. The Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee membership will be staggered so that no more than half of the member of the Committee will change in a calendar year.

New members may be recruited at any time to fill vacancies.

To be appointed for a second consecutive term, the Committee Member must submit in writing his/her willingness to serve a second term as well as a letter from his/her supporting organization. This appointment must be ratified and reaffirmed by the Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee and Chief Operating Officer or delegate. A Committee Member may not be re-nominated or re-appointed until a full year has been elapsed after completing two consecutive terms.

ACHAC - Member's Qualifications

Qualifications for individuals seeking membership on the Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee will include:

• Must be of Aboriginal ancestry.
• Knowledge and work experience in Aboriginal health and social issues.
• Demonstrated commitment to involvement in Aboriginal health and social issues.
• Non partisan.
• Must be able to attend a minimum of four meetings a year.

ACHAC – Support

The Coordinator of Aboriginal Partnerships and Community Engagement provides the documentation, background briefing and other support services to the Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee.

Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee Members are volunteers and do not receive remuneration, but are reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses.

ACHAC - Chair

Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee will have two co-chairs, one committee member from the Vancouver Urban community and one committee member from VCH First Nations community.

ACHAC - Decision - Making Process

Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee members will work towards a consensus model of decision-making. In the event that consensus cannot be reached during a meeting, a decision will be made according to the majority. All votes, including abstentions and oppositions, will be duly recorded.

ACHAC - Conflict of Interest

The Aboriginal Community Health Advisory Committee will follow the “Guidelines for Conduct” as per the Community Health Advisory Committee.