Patient and public involvement in research refers to research being carried out ‘with’ or ‘by’ patients, carers and public members (NIHR).
This can include seeking input from patients, carers or public members and working in partnership with researchers. This could be to come up with ideas, comment on research documents, help recruit patients to studies, carry out research (e.g. doing interviews or analysing data), and communicate about research to others.
Healthcare research can benefit from people's unique experiences of the healthcare system and their understanding of their condition. Carers or family members of patients can also bring a different perspective, particularly giving insight into the experience of those who do not have capacity to contribute themselves.
At the NIHR North West London PSRC, we are increasingly using co-production for our research projects. This is an approach used in some studies where researchers, practitioners and the public work together, sharing power and responsibility from the start to the end of the project.
Involving people from diverse backgrounds in research, including those from under-represented groups, can help to ensure our projects are ethical, feasible and designed appropriately for the needs of the people we are aiming to benefit. We involve people with lived experience, to ensure our projects are appropriately designed. This means our outputs are more likely to be translated into policy and practice and improve health and care.
Case studies
For more information please see:
For more information
For more information about our PPI work, contact:
Anna Lawrence-Jones, Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement Lead