Working with the Research Community: Training and a Toolkit for Patients & Members of the Public

The PPI Ignite Programme at Trinity College Dublin is focused on building capacity for public and patient involvement in health research, with a particular emphasis on improving the quality of approaches. One of 10 Ignite Partners, the Medical Research Charities Group (MRCG), hosts a Public Patient Involvement (PPI) Shared Learning Group (SLG) which includes 12 charities that are at various stages of developing PPI within their organisations, ranging from those who have established research involvement networks, with patients involved in different aspects of research, and those that have yet to take their first steps in formally involving patients. This SLG has identified a strong need to provide training for patients and members of the public in Ireland, in order to support them in participating in research processes. While some excellent, intensive training programmes exist, a general training for Irish patients to gain a basic understanding of research processes does not. Therefore, the ways in which they might contribute to research are largely misunderstood. Researcher-led initiatives, such as the PPI Ignite programmes, are hampered in their success without the existence of a pool of appropriately trained patients and members of the public. This project develops such training with a supporting toolkit - co-created with community Partners - to ensure a usable, useful and appropriate resources for organisations who want to encourage public involvement in research. This supporting Toolkit will allow members of the public to better position themselves for opportunities and provides worksheets for clarifying roles and responsibilities to confirm expectations.

Award Date

27 September 2018

Award Value

€34,995.33

Principal Investigator

Professor Mary McCarron

Host Institution

Trinity College Dublin

Scheme

Knowledge Exchange and Dissemination Scheme