The Reflecting Our Community Toolkit was developed by the Institute for Patient- and Family-Centered Care (IPFCC) and Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. It is based on learnings from two prior studies conducted by this team. Resources that summarize the team’s previous work are listed below.

• Strengthening Partnerships (2020-2021). This national study of U.S. children's hospitals identified ten key learnings for strengthening PFACs. Themes included increasing representation in PFAC membership, implementing personalized recruitment and engagement strategies, supporting PFAs from a variety of backgrounds, and engaging PFAs in health equity efforts.
• Strengthening Diversity (2022-2023). This study identified promising practices for advancing PFAC representativeness. It included a focused review of the literature, interviews with individuals working in children’s and adult hospitals and other health-related settings, and focus groups with PFAs from historically marginalized populations. The study identified six key areas of opportunity and best practices for advancing progress.

The team gathered data and examples to develop the Toolkit and reviewed information and resources from academic, government, healthcare, and nonprofit organizations. The Toolkit includes guidance and tools that are based on strategies used successfully by other healthcare organizations. The Toolkit also includes real-world examples from hospitals and other healthcare organizations that have taken action to advance PFACs. Examples are presented without identifying information, except in cases where a healthcare organization has published processes or findings publicly.