Become a Member

Many voices, better outcomes

Become a Member

Many voices, better outcomes

Home /Join Us /Become a Member

How to become a HCNSW member

We are a member organisation.

We are friendly and welcome everybody – no matter your ethnicity, gender, gender identity and expression, religion, sexual orientation, political orientation, body and health, age or experiences.

Please consider joining our network, the more voices we hear the better any co-design outcomes and consumer feedback will be.

Two female health engagement staff listening to a health consumer talking.

Individual members

Our individual members are health consumers and their representatives, interested in making health in NSW better. Every person who wants to use their voice and represent their community in shaping health services in NSW can become an individual member.

Quotation marks
HCNSW Individual Member

I was always made to feel very welcome. I learnt a lot and it set me on the path to active consumer involvement in my State and national groups.

Benefits of becoming an individual member and joining our network:

  • You become part of a state-wide network of health consumer representatives. This is a community of advocates with the passion and knowledge to shape healthcare in NSW for the benefit of patients, carers and their families.
  • We will always support you in your health consumer representative journey.
  • We offer health consumer representative training and learning opportunities.
  • We keep you up to date about consumer opportunities and the latest vacancies for consumer representatives.
  • You can join our online communities.
  • You get to shape health services and health research.
  • You use your lived experience to make health better, but you don’t have to fight on your own.

Join us as an individual member now. It’s free.

Become an individual member

Voting organisation members

Our voting members are not-for-profit health consumer organisations that are run and exist for patients, carers and their families. Representatives from our voting member organisations form our Board and lead our work.

Kaye Duffy, HCNSW voting member
Kaye Duffy
Voting member, Hunter Brain Tumour Support Network

Learning to participate in decision making is a vital requirement for getting the best health outcomes. Being a well-informed health consumer gives us peace of mind and the ability to understand the consequences of the decisions we make. Get involved!

Benefits of becoming a voting organisation member and joining our network:

  • We are here to represent you and by joining our network, you get direct access to us.
  • You can suggest a representative of your organisation as a HCNSW Board member and join our Board.
  • You can vote at our Annual General Meeting for Board member vacancies and on other HCNSW business.
  • Your organisation can join our NSW Consumer Organisations Taskforce.
  • We can help you with your health consumer engagement work.

Apply for your health consumer organisation to become a HCNSW voting member now. It’s free.

Become a HCNSW voting member

Associate organisation members

An associate member can be any health-related organisation interested in health consumer engagement, co-design and working with health consumers.

Amanda Justice, HCNSW Associate member
Amanda Justice
Community, South Eastern Sydney LHD

Having the support, expertise and independence of Health Consumers NSW to co-design our peak consumer and community council for the district has been invaluable.

Benefits of becoming an associate organisation member and joining our network:

  • You will have access to all our consumer engagement training, resources and services (fee for service and free).
  • We can help you find health consumer representatives for your (research) project and consumer advisory groups.
  • We will keep you up to date about health consumer engagement.
  • We advise you on payment of health consumer representatives.

Apply for your organisation, group or institution to become a HCNSW associate member now. It’s free.

Become an Associate member