The ACHS Improvement Academy offers this interactive workshop designed to support healthcare professionals and consumer representatives to strengthen genuine partnerships with consumers in the planning, design, delivery, and evaluation of healthcare services. 

Aligned with Standard 2 of the NSQHS Standards (2nd edition), the session explores how evolving patient and consumer expectations, shaped by experiences both within and beyond the healthcare sector, are influencing contemporary models of care. 

Participants will examine practical, human‑centred and design methodology tools to better understand the lived experiences of patients and families and apply these insights to service improvement. 

Through facilitated discussion and applied learning activities, participants will identify and evaluate practical opportunities to partner with consumers to improve healthcare service design, delivery, and outcomes, supporting safer, higher‑quality, and more person‑centred care. 

This is a 3‑hour training session. We acknowledge attendance and time spent in learning which may be used to apply for CPD points from your professional registration body. 

29 September 2026   |   11am-2pm AEST Select

Registration

$190 AUD per person (ex GST)

Discounts are available at checkout:

- Staff from ACHS and ACHS International Member Organisations or Improvement Academy Affiliates receive 10% discount

- Group bookings of 3 or more people from the same organisation receive a 5% discount

Prices at the ticket selection and payment pages will include GST and invoices can be requested. Prices are subject to change.

Who is this course for?

The course is suitable for participants seeking practical tools to understand lived experience, respond to evolving consumer expectations, and work in partnership with consumers to improve healthcare outcomes. 

  • Clinical leaders and clinicians involved in service planning, redesign, or quality improvement

  • Improvement, design, and change practitioners supporting person‑centred care and innovation

  • Consumer Representatives and advisors working with healthcare organisations

  • Service Managers and health administrators leading improvement initiatives

  • Consumer engagement, patient experience, and partnership leads

  • Quality, safety, and clinical governance professionals responsible for NSQHS Standard 2 implementation

  • "Very practical - learnings that can very easily be taken back to improve the work I do."

    Previous course participant

  • "Great presenter, Shelley was very clear and concise and knowledgeable."

    Previous course participant

  • "The presenter was very knowledgeable on the subject. The journey mapping using healthcare scenarios was for me the most informative part of the session.."

    Previous course participant

Learning Outcomes

Develop an understanding in:

  • Recognise patient expectations are changing, driven by service expectations set outside the health care industry

  • Understand the requirements of NSQHS second edition, Standard: Consumers as Partners

  • Introduce design thinking methodology tools to deeply understand the actual lived experience of patients and families

  • Identify opportunities to partner with consumers to improve health care services and outcomes

Meet Your Presenter

Ms Shelley Thomson

Dip App Sc (NMT), Grad Dip Ult (RMIT), MBA, DipRetail, CertTAA

Co-Founder and Director, The Patient Experience Agency

Faculty Member, Improvement Collective

Shelley Thomson is a faculty member of the Improvement Collective, where she delivers webinars as the specialist in consumer partnership under the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards, patient experience and patient voice — incorporating consumer, carer and patient perspectives and experience into everything she does. She is also Co-Founder and Director of the Patient Experience Agency, a human-centred design consultancy focused on advancing practical, outcomes-driven healthcare improvement. An allied health professional and experienced facilitator, Shelley works with clinics and services to embed Patient-Reported Measures (PROMs and PREMs) and meaningful consumer partnerships into clinical practice, service design and governance.

Her work supports organisations to deliver safer, more personalised and value-based care aligned with the NSQHS Standards. Guided by the principle “Nothing About Us, Without Us,” Shelley champions the active involvement of patients, carers and communities in shaping care delivery, quality improvement and health system reform alongside clinicians, leaders and digital health innovators. Shelley holds ICHOM’s Certified Value-Based Health Care Professional credential and has completed the Value Institute for Health and Care’s Measuring What Matters and Healthcare Transformation Leadership programs at the University of Texas at Austin.

Important Booking Information

  • Discounted Registration fees

    Discounted fees are provided for ACHS and ACHSI Members and IA Affiliates. Please ensure your organisation is a current member of ACHS at the time of registration. If you are unsure of your organisation's membership status, please contact your Clinical Governance Unit.

  • Payments and Invoicing

    Please note that registrations for this event are managed by Eventbrite which accepts payment with credit or debit card. Registrants will receive an automated tax invoice/receipt once they have finalised their payment. This can be used for reimbursement purposes. Please contact us at [email protected] if you require an invoice for your organisation to pay registration fees.

  • Cancellation Policy

    The ACHS reserves the right to cancel any program. Full registration will be refunded if a program is cancelled or oversubscribed. Cancellations received in writing more than 7 days prior to the event will be accepted and all fees refunded less 10% (ex GST) of the total cost of the training. Cancellations advised in writing within 7 days of the event will not be refunded, however, transfer of your registration to another person in your organisation or an alternative IA event for the same value is supported.

  • Support

    If you have any enquiries, please contact us at [email protected]

Register Now

29 September 2026   |   11am-2pm AEST Select

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