Our work

These are exciting times for INVOLVE with work focusing on three National Leadership Areas (Learning and Development, Diversity and Inclusion, Community & Partnerships), as identified by Going the Extra Mile (2015). INVOLVE will provide coordination and leadership and work with stakeholders to identify and prioritise key objectives for the next three years.

Also, our new partnership with the Research Design Services is starting to take shape and through that partnership working we are now working collaboratively to support the development and co-ordination of effective regional PPI networks which make best use of effort and resources increasing regional to local connectivity to extend and deepen public and patient involvement (PPI).

Standards

Over the last two years a UK-wide partnership, have been developing a set of standards and indicators for public involvement/engagement in research.  The new, national standards for public involvement in research provide a framework for reflecting on and improving the purpose, quality and consistency of public involvement/engagement. They describe the building blocks for good public involvement/engagement and provide a baseline of expectations. Read more about it here.

Learning and Development 

A new webpage on the INVOLVE site now collects the new resources developed by the Project Group, with links to existing materials. It has a quick guide to help you navigate this page and find the resources you are looking for.

Diversity and Inclusion

We are looking to develop methods and resources to support more diverse, representative and proportional involvement in research and the broader health and social care system. We have formed a working group which includes public members and experts in the field of diversity and inclusion. They have developed an action plan, which will continually evolve, and is aligned with INVOLVE’s Values and principles framework and will interlink with the other work programmes.

Through the course of this work we will be building on and updating the resources that INVOLVE has already developed: Strategies for diversity and inclusion in public involvement in research and Diversity and inclusion: What is it about and why is it important for public involvement in research.

Co-production

INVOLVE are leading on an NIHR wide project looking at how co-production could be used to improve public involvement in research.

There is no single definition of co-production, which is usually associated with service design and improvement, and it is not clear how it ‘fits’ with public involvement in research.

This project will bring together various parts of the NIHR and members of the public to explore these issues, and to look at existing literature. There will be a round table discussion and consensus workshop and recommendations will be made on whether and how the NIHR can use the principles of co-production in its culture, processes and procedures.

Since joining Patient Focused Medicines Development (PFMD) in May 2017, INVOLVE has been very active in PFMD projects and this has helped us connect to the professionals working in patient involvement and engagement in the UK and beyond. INVOLVE at 21 will bring the Pledge to Patients challenge to the participants of the conference, and to all those working in patient involvement.

The first edition of the PFMD Book of Good Practices in patient engagement is now available to download. It aims to provide inspiration and practical examples for everyone interested in delivering patient engagement initiatives.

The Book of Good Practices is based on a strong selection and assessment methodology, designed and delivered by our co-creation team and a network of collaborators. It is the perfect complement to the newly launched Patient Engagement Quality Guidance. The use of the criteria as outlined in the Guidance was key to the evaluation and ultimately the ranking of the eligible initiatives, thus contributing to a systematic approach to patient engagement evolution.