November 2003 Liz Whamond 1

COCHRANE CONSUMER NETWORK

PRESENT

PAST

FUTURE

November 2003 Liz Whamond 2

THE PAST• 1993 - the first Colloquium in Oxford,

England – first steering committee was appointed by the participants – Hilda Bastian represented consumers on that Steering Committee

• 1994 – the Cochrane Consumer Network was proposed – a second consumer position on the Steering Committee was granted

November 2003 Liz Whamond 3

THE PAST – CONT’D

• 1995 – there were 25 members in the Network and Hilda Bastian became Coordinator

• First AGM was held in in Oslo, Norway• Interim coordinating committee consisted of Jean

Jones (Canada), Fran Visco (USA), Ros Woods (Australia) and Hilda Bastian (Australia)

November 2003 Liz Whamond 4

THE PAST – CONT’D

• 1996 the membership more than doubled

• The second AGM was held in Adelaide, Australia

• 14 consumers attended from six countries

• The first newsletter was published

November 2003 Liz Whamond 5

THE PAST – CONT’D

• 1997 membership was a key priority• The second newsletter was published• 25 consumers from 8 countries attended the

Amsterdam Colloquium • A local management committee in Adelaide was

developed that was directly accessible to Convenor rather than an international structure

November 2003 Liz Whamond 6

THE PAST CONT’D

• 1998 the Convenor was supported financially for two days plus a coordinator who worked for two days per week

• Funding was provided by ACC to CCN• Three newsletters were published• The first consumers from developing countries

(South Africa and Zimbabwe) attended the Colloquium in Baltimore, Maryland

November 2003 Liz Whamond 7

THE PAST CONT’D

• 1999 was the year of the Rome Colloquium

• Two newsletters were published

• CCN membership was at 353

• Communications costs were increasing necessitating the switch over to e-mail and web communications

November 2003 Liz Whamond 8

THE PAST CONT’D• ACC grant moved to Melbourne, CCN stayed in

Adelaide and was left with some funding• Medibank Private began funding a web-based

consumer health information system paid directly to CCN

• Capetown, South Africa AGM was attended by 20 consumers from 11 countries

• Less emphasis on recruiting consumers with more concern for activating and supporting existing membership

November 2003 Liz Whamond 9

PAST CONT’D

• 2001 saw a decrease in funding from the ACC• Funding became a major concern• CCCNI was incorporated as a non-profit

association to receive outside funding• AGM in Lyon was attended by 23 people from 10

countries• A governance working party was established

November 2003 Liz Whamond 10

THE PAST CONT’D

• 2002 was a real shift for the organization• While membership had grown substantially, it was

felt that the governing body should be truly international

• Working group continued on the governance document

• The Convenor resigned from the Management Committee and her work with Medibank Private on the health information website continued

November 2003 Liz Whamond 11

THE PRESENT

• 2003 (January) the new governing council took office

• Membership of the Governing Council is: Godwin Aja (Nigeria), Don Baumber (Australia), Gill Gyte (England) Samuel Ochieng (Kenya), Silvana Simi (Italy), Janet Wale (Australia), Liz Whamond (Canada) and Sara Yaron (Israel)

November 2003 Liz Whamond 12

THE PRESENT CONT’D• We have major challenges in terms of funding as there

were no assets remaining from the previous management. All work is conducted by the Governing Council

• We procured funding through the Australian Department of Health and Ageing to host a workshop in Australia, to develop a checklist exercise, to conduct a survey of Cochrane Collaborative Review Groups and Fields on consumer participation and a model strategic plan

November 2003 Liz Whamond 13

THE PRESENT (CONT’D)• An orientation folder has been developed

through the Australian funding

• Four newsletters have been produced

• We continue to monitor the consumer e-mail list

• We have members on the Cochrane Steering Group and several sub-committees

November 2003 Liz Whamond 14

THE PRESENT (CONT’D)• The Governing Council met in Barcelona in Oct.• Our name changed to Cochrane Consumer Network

(CCNet)• We had a Special General Meeting and an AGM

during the Colloquium• Several consumer workshops were held including

“Making Sense of Evidence”• The Governing Council has been renamed to the

Coordinating Team• The CCSG provided discretionary funds to CCNet

November 2003 Liz Whamond 15

The Future • Our governance document will be re-examined to

ensure that it’s realistic and meets the needs of consumers worldwide

• We will to continue to grow our membership• Our draft Strategic Plan will be further developed • We are working towards becoming a Cochrane

Field