Promoting consumer involvement

Recognizing that consumer involvement is a key element to effective systems change and successfully ending family homelessness is essential. However, it is just the beginning. In order to incorporate meaningful consumer involvement, organizations create an environment that promotes healthy partnerships with families.

In order to fully engage consumers, organizations should strive to put supports in place to break down some of the barriers that might keep consumers from being able to fully participate. Some of the supports that can greatly increase the amount and quality of consumer involvement in your organization include but are not limited to:

• On-site childcare,
• Stipends to compensate for time and travel expenses
• Meeting times that accommodate families’ schedules

When seeking truly meaningful consumer involvement, organizations must demonstrate a willingness to educate consumers around the issues and systems that our communities are trying to change and improve. This will ensure that the feedback, information and ideas presented by consumers are relevant and useful.

When involving consumer voices in a meaningful way, organizational staff and group members must understand and believe that:

• Consumers bring expertise to the table
• The opinions, ideas and solutions offered by consumers are based in true knowledge on the system we seek to impact

Once consumers are engaged, provider staff and group members should:

• Keep consumers informed and up-to-date on policy and system changes
• Distribute data, guidelines and all other materials that are critical to the decision making process.
• Avoid using jargon and acronyms that seem exclusive to the community in which we exist until the consumers can effectively “speak the same language.”

Upon establishing meaningful consumer involvement, organizations should work to maintain meaningful relationships with participating consumers. Consumer involvement will work when it is implemented as a long-term component of your organization and its mission. To assist your organization in successfully engaging consumers in your work,

• Consumers should be an active part of planning processe
• Conduct consumer focus groups and other meetings to gain a sense of how your consumers feel about your programs; consider having a consumer facilitate these groups
• Invite consumers to sit on your board of directors and support their participation
• Utilize consumers in evaluating your programs; they have the ability to develop trust with other consumers

Finally, in any successful partnership, there needs to be trust and respect. The relationship between provider and consumer is no different. Both bring an expertise around the issues of poverty and homelessness, and we need both sides actively engaged in order to see through our collective effort of ending family homelessness.

Family homelessness in Massachusetts is solvable. In order to reach this end, we must effectively engage all stakeholders to be partners in identifying and implementing, systemic change and creative solutions. Consumer involvement is a key component in this endeavor.