Jacinta Smith

In 2019 I was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia. My journey took me through induction and consolidation rounds of chemotherapy as well as a Bone Marrow Transplant. During this treatment period I spent 22 days on life support in the Intensive Care Unit due to total organ failure and consequently, spent an extended time in a rehabilitation unit due to my deconditioned state.

Since 2020 I have used my lived experience to advocate for consumers, carers and their families. I am passionate about advocating for those with a life limiting illness or disease. My belief is that quality care should be available to all – no matter the stage of illness, and that all consumers, carers, and their families feel truly heard by their health care professionals in these difficult times. It is very important that the patient is treated with dignity, that their care team is aware of what is important to the patient, what their goals are, and what ‘unfinished business’ they might have.  In addition to this, the patient should be given the opportunity to know as much, (or as little) about the progression of their disease whilst having the opportunity to participate in their health care.

Prior to my diagnosis I spent most of my career as a successful home lender for a major bank demonstrating a high standard of customer service excellence for my clients.

As a Consumer Representative I am involved/have been involved in a variety of different activities:

• Member of the QLD Metro North Cancer Care Services partnering with consumers committee.
• Speaking to graduate nurses about the patient experience, what is important to a patient, what the nursing staff do well and what they could do better.
• The 15 Steps program which uses a variation on mystery shopping observational approaches to understand what service users and carers experience when they first arrive in a healthcare setting.
• Consumer Representative for the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research (WEHI).
• Participant in Person Centred Research Themes Co-Design Workshop.
• Reviewing and offering feedback on brochures, websites etc from a consumer perspective.
• Panel speaker at the Palliative Care Education and Training Symposium.
• Team member of the Symptoms Pathway Project (for better management of oncology symptoms).
• Consumer Representative of PREM (Patient Reported Experience Measure) Qualitative Research Project aimed at improving patient experience for those in the last 1-2 years of life.
• Consumer Representative in a research study of prebiotics for haematology patients.
• Participant in Central Venous Access Device (CVAD) and IV patient reported experience and outcomes study.
• Consumer Representative with QLD Cancer Centre.

On a personal note, I love spending time at home with family and friends, cooking, going to the gym and touring our beautiful country in our caravan.

If you would like to engage Jacinta or another consumer representative for your project, please complete an application form and return to projects@palliativecare.org.au or call 02 6232 0700.