Parent involvement in research, capturing the journey and making it meaningful

2012 Conference

Abstract: Child Talk – What works is a National Institute for Health Research funded research programme which aims to improve the quality of speech and language therapy for preschool children in England. The research team have recently set up a parent research panel to support the development, delivery and dissemination of the research.

One of the aims of the parent research panel will be to work with the research team to develop a method for capturing the parent journey of involvement in research. This could take the form of reflective diaries, interviews or questionnaires but will be discussed and decided by the panel. It is expected that this piece of work will provide a realistic view of the parents journey and help the research team develop long term plans for public involvement in all future research projects. It will also help the research team to identify ways to support the parents to achieve their goals.

We aim to present and discuss the expectations and motivations that parents had for becoming involved in our research programme, the method that parents chose for capturing their journey, and how this information is helping to shape the work of the panel and the research programme.