Community Voices

Lived Experience Advisory Partners (LEAP)

The Sleep Health Foundation has always aimed to capture the voice of people with lived experience of sleep disorders.  We strive to deepen community understanding of the importance of sleep for health, why sleep disorders need professional diagnosis and treatment; and, to provide information about common sleep difficulties and how to address them. How better to do this than to have advice and guidance from those experiencing sleep disorders?

The Lived Experience Advisory Partners (formerly known as the Consumer Reference Council), co-chaired by Associate Professor Andrew Vakulin from Flinders University (and SHF Board member) and Dr Jenny Haycock from Flinders University, consists of nine people with a broad range of sleep disorders, including obstructive sleep apnoea, insomnia, narcolepsy, idiopathic hypersomnia, restless legs syndrome, and parasomnias.

The primary function of the Lived Experience Advisory Partners is to provide strategic and advisory input to the SHF Board on matters relating to advocacy, education, partnerships and research, to ensure that the consumer voice and perspective are heard and at the core of all SHF activities.