Patient partners are increasingly being asked to ‘share their story’ within health care and research settings. But there are not many resources to support them in preparing their stories in a way that will be impactful to different audiences. The Canadians Seeking Solutions and Innovations to Overcome Chronic Kidney Disease (Can-SOLVE CKD) aimed to address this gap by creating a virtual program, Storytelling for Impact.

In this webinar, part of the International PPI Network: Learning Live webinar series, the presenters explored the successes and learnings from the creation of this program and the importance of inclusive involvement.

The webinar was aimed at anyone interested in patient and public involvement and community engagement. It was delivered in November 2024 and below you will find the videos from the webinar, together with accompanying slides to download [PDF].

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Presenter Bios

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Leah Getchell, MA, MSW, RSW is an Anthropologist and Social Worker who has been working in the Patient and Public Involvement space since 2015. She currently works as the Modality Coordinator for the Regional Renal Program out of London, Ontario. During her time with the Can-SOLVE CKD Network, a national patient-oriented kidney research group, she worked with the Patient Governance Council and oversaw a multistakeholder group who developed various learning materials, including the Storytelling for Impact Module. She also brings lived experience to her work via her mother Susan’s tenure with kidney disease and has co-authored several peer-reviewed publications.

Teresa Atkinson As a person with 40 years of lived experience with a chronic disease, Teresa is a passionate advocate for empowering others and building community. She has 25+ years of volunteer experience with various kidney-related health charities, focusing on raising public awareness, peer engagement, promoting organ donation, strategic planning, and governance. She loves connecting people within the kidney community and helping them along their kidney journey. Teresa currently has the privilege of working for the Kidney Foundation of Canada as the Project Lead for their Kidney Wellness Hub.

Research and being involved as a patient partner has become an exciting area where those with lived experience can make a difference for both patients and clinicians. Storytelling for Impact is something Teresa is very passionate about. She didn't realize its potential until she used it to distill her 40 years of lived experience into key messages. She was then able to communicate those messages in a very succinct yet impactful way with some tips and coaching. Teresa's involvement as a patient partner has been some of the most gratifying work she's done, thanks to this course, and something she regularly shares with others in the community.