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Frequently Asked Questions for Participants

Why did I get invited to a dialogue?

You received an invitation to this dialogue because the hosts believe you have important ideas and experiences that your community needs to consider as it looks at our healthcare future.

Who else is invited?

The dialogue brings together 25 to 40 people. Hosts are asked to bring together a group that reflects your community and its mix of adult ages, races, ethnicities, professions, incomes, education levels and experiences with health care.

What if I don’t know much about health care?

We know that each person in the U.S. has experiences and observations about health care. This is all you need to participate in the dialogue.

How long is a dialogue?

Dialogues are usually scheduled for seven and a half hours, from 8:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. This includes time for registration, lunch and breaks. The dialogue will probably be different from most meetings or workshops you have attended. You will be actively involved—thinking, talking, reading, listening, working with others—throughout the day. People report that they get so involved that the time goes very quickly.

Will I have to speak in front of the group?

There are a number of places in the dialogue where people are invited to speak in the large group. However, this is always optional. You just say “pass” if you aren’t ready to speak.

Why is it called a “dialogue”?

We call it a dialogue for two reasons.

First, the day is designed to help you and others in your community think about and talk about your experiences and ideas related to health care—how it is now and how you’d like it to be. This meeting is not designed to get you to think a certain way. That’s why we don’t call it a training or workshop.

Second, during the day you will be asked to pay attention to the quality of your conversations. You will be asked to watch how you listen to other people and respect their ideas. You will be asked to tell others what you think. In dialogue, you and the other participants will listen for the wisdom that can show up when people really work together.

If you want to know more, you can review the description of dialogue you will use.

What do people wear to a dialogue?

People usually wear comfortable, casual clothing. If the space is likely to have air conditioning and you tend to get cold, you may want to wear long sleeves and bring a jacket.

What kinds of things will I be asked to do?

The dialogue will be led by two skilled leaders from your community. They will offer clear directions for exercises that will help your group explore our healthcare future.

Here is an overview of what you will do.

  1. The day begins in a circle: Each person is asked to tell why health care is important to him or her
  2. You’ll be invited to introduce yourself to your table group by giving your name and your idea of the perfect health care system
  3. Your facilitators will give an overview of the day
  4. You’ll hear about three “laws of life” that come into play in big systems like health care
  5. You’ll take a survey that helps you name your top priorities for health care
  6. You’ll hear a few useful facts about health care in the U.S. today
  7. You’ll review a description of dialogue and think about what you do well and name—just for yourself—one thing you want to do better as you practice dialogue during the day
  8. Your individual survey results (#5 above) will be combined with surveys completed by others. You’ll get a graph that shows the priorities of the group. You’ll see how your priorities compare with the group’s priorities.
  9. You will look at the current health care system and see how it stacks up against the top five priorities named by the whole group.
  10. You will look at two possible future health care systems and see how these stack up against the top five priorities of the group.
  11. You’ll look at “next steps” you can take to continue to work for change in health care.
  12. You’ll let the facilitators know what you liked about the dialogue and what can be done to make future dialogues even better.
  13. The day ends in a circle: Each person is invited to tell the group what was important to them about the day’s exploration

The Why Dialogue? video show people from other communities participating in this healthcare dialogue.

 

“I was really involved. The day went quickly.”