Children’s Hospital of Greenville Health System (GHS) values the opinions and suggestions of families who have had experience with GHS.
At GHS Children’s Hospital, the Family Advisory Council empowers families and gives them a voice in decisions that affect patient care and family experiences. The Family Advisory Council includes adult family members and Children’s Hospital employees.
The goal of the Family Advisory Council is to provide a forum for family members and employees to participate in hospital decision-making and help educate members about family-centered care. Family Advisory Council members must be an active listener and be committed to the idea of positive change.
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More Questions?
Emily Durham
Supervisor, Child Life Services
(864) 455-3639 • edurham@ghs.org
Frequently Asked Questions
To join or not to join? This is the big question most parents ask.. It’s nice to be invited, it’s even nicer to have expertise to share, but …but… “Do I have enough time?” and “How will this affect my family?”
Generally speaking, advisory groups advise an agency or organization. They do not have responsibility for planning activities, fund-raising, or decision making for the organization. They study the issue at hand, collect input from members of the advisory group and perhaps externally from the community, and report back to the larger agency.
- To help others and to share what you have learned.
- To influence the direction of activities, services and policies. Your opinion matters. You can help shape how services or policies unfold.
- To learn more about programs that may benefit your child and other children.
- To develop skills that will help you in your present job or help you get a better one. You can add your Council experience to your resume, especially any special projects you work on. Serving on the Council may broaden your network and contacts.
- To make a difference. This is your opportunity to create positive change in the lives of individuals with disabilities and their families. Your concrete and practical knowledge about disabilities can help ensure that the decisions made by the larger organization are informed ones.
The Family Advisory Council meets the third Tuesday of every month from 6-8 p.m. in the Conference Center at Greenville Memorial Hospital. Each member is asked to serve a two-year term.
In addition, you may be asked to do research between meetings. It may help to look at this time commitment as an investment: an investment in your family, in your community and in yourself.
Usually, change happens when people become aware of what needs to happen, how it needs to happen and care that it happens. You can make change happen by getting involved, giving your time and energy to the Council and helping others to get involved.
