Are services family centred or family directed?

There is a whole lot of information about Family Centered Care or Services. We hear about it in health care and social services and education. It means that the service provided is about the family, or wraps around the person and the family. Fair enough. But who's in the driver's seat?

With family centered care, the family can be included in planning and discussion, but do they really have a say in the matter? I have been to enough meetings with parents to witness an interesting phenomenon. Parents ask for a meeting and have an agenda planned. The meeting begins, and who is doing all the talking? The professional. The parent doesn't get a chance to present the agenda or their concerns, until the end of the meeting.

To me, if a parent requests a meeting, it's only common sense that they direct or Chair the meeting. It's their meeting, isn't it?