The ILC Erik Elgaard Sørensen Foundation Fellowship Program
The ILC Management Committee recently endorsed the development of an ILC Fundamentals of Care Fellowship Program. As a key initiative for the next five years, the Fellowship Program has the potential to provide the ILC Membership with a rich library of resources, to broaden the influence and presence of the ILC internationally, and to strengthen the programs the ILC plans to run in the future.
The ILC Fellowship program addresses four of the ILC goals:
- Collaboration: the roles will facilitate collaboration in key areas of focus for the ILC – research, education, policy and practice.
- Global Champions: the roles will raise the profiles of the people appointed under the program, acknowledging them as experts in fundamentals of care in their chosen field.
- Influence: documents, resources and tools will be developed that enhance awareness and understanding of fundamental care and the increase impact of the ILC globally.
- Value: documents, resources and tools will be developed that will assist Members to influence change and promote the value of fundamental care.
The ILC Founding Members will be invited to propose appoint of a Fellow, hosted in their organisation for two years, and to nominate the area in which the ILC Fellow would work.
In 2024, it is proposed that the first ILC Fellow would be chosen and appointed by Flinders University. As the only Platinum Founding Member, Flinders University is home to several long-standing ILC members. The current Chairperson, Prof Alison Kitson and Treasurer, Prof Tiffany Conroy are senior staff at Flinders University.
Flinders University has nominated Dr Rebecca Feo to become the inaugural ILC Fellow for 2024 with a focus on research.
Prof Lianne Jeffs (Canada) and Prof Tiffany Conroy (Australia) will co-lead the Fellowship Program and be responsible for designing the accountability mechanism and review nominations and plans submitted by Founding Partners and potential Fellows.
INTRODUCING OUR INAUGURAL FELLOW: DR REBECCA FEO
Dr Feo is a Senior Research Fellow in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences. She completed her PhD in Psychology at the University of Adelaide in 2012. She has worked previously as an Evaluation Officer at Relationships Australia South Australia (2012-2015) and as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Adelaide (2015-2018).
Since beginning work in academia in 2015, Rebecca has achieved national and international recognition for her research on the role of caregiving relationships in ensuring high-quality care delivery. She applies this research expertise specifically in relation to fundamental care; the universal care required by everyone regardless of clinical condition or care setting.
From 2015-2021, Rebecca was the Executive Officer of the International Learning Collaborative (ILC), a member-based organisation dedicated to elevating the standard of fundamental care globally. Her work continues to involve collaborations with ILC members from around the globe.