I am a Professor of Medical Sociology in the School of Health and Human Sciences, University of Essex. My research is mainly about the  experiential perspectives of  chronic illness. This has made me aware of the importance of the patient voice and why it needs to be central to research. I sit on the INVOLVE executive group as a representative of the NIHR Research Design Service (RDS). I am Director of the RDS for the East of England and the national  RDS lead for public involvement. The RDS provides advice and support to applied health and social care researchers developing funding proposals. We help  researchers engage with patients and members of the public to make sure that the research is relevant to and takes account of their needs.