Increase diversity and inclusion

​​This page has information for people leading and taking part in engagement activities.

• Find out how this guide was developed.
• Watch video: ​​consumers, carers, community and staff explore diversity​
  
• Check you've covered the essentials.

On this page

1. What we mean
2. Without diversity and inclusion
3. What to expect: consumers, carers and communities
4. What facilitators and meeting Chairs can do
5. What isn't okay
6. Resources to support you
7. References

What we mean

We don't expect one conversation or person to represent a community. We reflect the diversity of our communities in conversations, groups and committees ^[1][2]. We use different ways to ways to engage different people. We listen to communities on how to engage them best.

Without diversity and inclusion

We know some people still face significantly poorer access to health services. Those same people are often underrepresented (or not there at all) in groups, committees and projects. To have a health system that works for all of us, we need to make sure there is a diversity of experiences, identities and ideas in projects and committees. Diversity and inclusion don't just happen. They must be planned for.

What to expect: consumers, carers and communities

• Take part without harm ^[1] or discrimination.
• Have other consumers and carers in projects and groups.
• Be valued equally to others in the work, regardless of your employment status, education or identity.
• Be asked what you need to take part (you might not know, and that's okay – we made a few tools to help).
• Be welcome if you share the details of your lived experience or trauma or not.
• Have your correct pronouns used.
• Have a few choices on where, when and how to engage.
• Share your experience and not be asked to represent your entire community.
• Have facilitators be curious and ask you about things like safety, access and inclusion.
• Have concerns about a lack of diversity or inclusion heard and taken seriously.
• Have support from facilitators, peers and/or mental health support (if you need it) if your identity or experience is disrespected, or not understood well enough.

Sometimes, you may be asked to take part in a different way so that someone that isn't well-represented in a conversation or committee can take part. By changing how you take part, you'll help us make sure there's even more diversity.

What facilitators or meeting Chairs can do

Here are some actions you can take across the engagement process.

When planning:

• use the Plan questions and Essentials checklist^[6]
• check your understanding of exclusion ^[4]
• identify priority populations for projects and committees ^[2]
• proactively recruit consumers and carers with relevant lived experience ^[2]
• have relationships with community members and organisations before asking them for things (such as joining a committee, supplying participants or giving you free advice)
• talk to community organisations about what impacts the safety of the people you want to involve (for example, racism, transphobia, xenophobia, sensory overwhelm, bad places for sessions). And about what can be done.
• if you're not connected to, or a part of, the community you're working with, consider facilitating with someone who is
• understand and respect Aboriginal cultural protocols and ways of being ^[5][6]
• consider how you'll increase diversity and inclusion through different ways of doing things (for example, after-hours sessions, working with community leaders, options to take part outside of meetings)
• provide relevant culture and diversity training to staff, consumers, carers and communities (for example, Aboriginal cultural competence, LGBTIQA+ inclusion or disability rights) ^[2].

When inviting and supporting people to be included:

• do your homework about different communities' inclusion needs
• make it a part of all registration and onboarding processes to ask about access and inclusion needs. Here's an example.
• let consumers, carers and communities know what you're putting in place for inclusion, provide other options and invite them to share other ideas and needs Don't assume. Here's an example of how to do this.
• make it a part of all processes to ask about access and inclusion needs. Here's an example.
• give people permission to do what they need (for example, leave the room, turn cameras off, bring a support person or pet)
• use technology to enable participation by people who can't attend in person [2]
• consider what you can share with people in advance so everyone can come prepared to contribute
• start talking about group agreements about what is and isn't okay
• consider a rough welcome video introducing yourself, the project and what people can expect. Here's an example from the design process for All of Us.

When doing and deciding:

• start slow - build relationships and trust
• make agreements on what is and isn't okay
• understand and respect Aboriginal cultural protocols and ways of being [5][6]
• notice if communities are being talked about and are not in the room. Then, do something about that
• explore ways you/the group can support people to catch up if they missed an update or session
• acknowledge people have different ways of participating. Some people may engage deeply while not saying anything
• share when things have changed that will impact the project and people's role(s)
• seek ongoing feedback about inclusion and make changes when you need to
• offer different ways for people take part in and outside sessions.

When reviewing and learning:

• reflect on the diversity (or lack of) in your project or group.
• ask for feedback. How included (or excluded) did people feel in your project or group?
• use what you hear to build your practice and improve next time.
• for co-design, review if you met your goal for higher participation
• know that while you might think you did co-design, the people involved might not.

What isn't okay

What isn't okay is:

• asking one person to speak for their entire community
• not engaging consumers, carers or community because staff share an identity with a community
• asking one person (a consumer, carer, facilitator, staff member) to bring diversity into an otherwise non-diverse group (This can be isolating and unsafe for the person. Particularly when other group members haven't received any training, such as in trans-inclusive language, Aboriginal cultural competence, disability rights and experiences.)
• only communicating in one way with no other options (pictures, a rough video, a chat, or something else)
• shaming people who use fidgets, knit, move around, need time off camera or stim [8].

Resources to support you

• All of Us: Plan questions
  Use the questions to thoughtfully plan your project or committee.
• All of Us: Essentials checklist
  Use the checklist to think about and plan for recognition, safety and access. Not as a replacement for talking with consumers, carers and communities.
• All of Us: Explore access and inclusion questions
  Do your homework on different access needs, offer accommodations and ask people what they need. Don't assume.
• All of Us: Explore safety activity
  An activity to understand different understandings and needs for safety. Yours, staff, consumers, carers and communities.
• Lesley-Ann Noel and Marcelo Paiva: Learning to recognise exclusion tools

References

1. Consumer Leaders in Health Collective. (2022). Statement of Aims. Unpublished.
2. Agency for Clinical Innovation. (2021). Working with Consumers: A person-centred innovation strategy.
3. ACON (n.d.). Transhub: What are pronouns?
4. Noel, Lesley-Ann & Paiva, Marcelo. (2021). Learning to Recognize Exclusion.
5. Agency for Clinical Innovation NSW. (n.d.). Working together with Aboriginal communities.
6. Emerging Minds. (n.d.). Principles to practice: Beginning to see the door.
7. Agency for Clinical Innovation NSW. (n.d.). Partnership Foundations.
8. New South Wales Department of Education. (2020). Our disability strategy: An advocate's tips to engage better with those on the spectrum
   
9. Beyond Sticky Notes. (2022). Welcome to the Design Crew.

*We: Any reference to 'we' includes consumers, carers, staff, volunteers and anyone else working in local health districts (LHDs) and specialty health networks (SHNs), at the Ministry of Health, across the NSW pillar agencies and other NSW Health organisations. The use of this language is deliberate to show the collective effort required by all of us.