Patient Reflection: Bringing it All Together
Carolyn Canfield provided closing remarks for the Restorative Leadership Symposium that highlighted the centrality of trust in a Restorative Approach. Carolyn reflected on the social determinants of trust and the importance of cultivating and role-modelling good relationships in the workplace to gaining the trust of the patient.
Carolyn Canfield
Independent Citizen-Patient
Adjunct Professor, Dept of Family Practice, Innovation Support Unit
Faculty of Medicine Admissions Subcommittee
The University of British Columbia
Carolyn Canfield works as a citizen-patient to expand partnerships for patients and communities in health professional education, services improvement, policy research and governance. Following the unforeseen and preventable death of her husband after successful surgery in 2008, Carolyn’s full-time activism earned her recognition in 2014 as Canada’s first Patient Safety Champion and faculty appointment in the UBC Faculty of Medicine. University roles include team membership in the Department of Family Practice’s Innovation Support Unit; teaching patient safety to students in medicine, nursing and social work; and selecting candidates for admission to medical school.
Her research contributions include UBC-based, national and international projects as a co-researcher, advisory board member, funding adjudicator and journal peer reviewer. Her public speaking and mentorship are sought locally and internationally. Carolyn conceptualized and co-founded in 2017 the independent peer-led Patient Advisors Network that builds citizen-patient capacity for partnering and leadership across Canada. In 2023 Carolyn established the Canfield Distinguished Scholar in Patient Partnerships at UBC, situated at the Centre for Health Education Scholarship in the Faculty of Medicine.
