Top Tips - Demonstrating public involvement in your funding application
Public involvement needs to be woven through applications and it is imperative that you show the changes you've made due to the involvement. It's no longer acceptable just to state that you've consulted the public during the design process: details are what will make your application stand out!
- How patients shaped the research question or why patients thought the research important (not merely stating that patients thought it important). Give examples in your Plain English Summary and in your research plan.
- How you have considered both the research team's and patients' public involvement training needs and do you need to access training for them as well as yourself on public involvement?
- How patients shaped the intervention and decided which outcome measures to use in clinical trials.
- How patients’ input was used to minimise the burden on participants and illustrate this with an example.
- How patients influenced the ethical design of a trial, e.g. whether the use of a placebo would be acceptable.
- Where patients identified that participants might potentially experience distress and what appropriate changes had been made in response.
- How practical arrangements were changed to better meet the needs of participants, e.g. follow-up clinics at more appropriate times?
- How recruitment processes were changed to be sensitive to the emotional and practical needs of potential participants.
- How you ensured that your patient recruitment and engagement strategy promoted equality of opportunity and was inclusive of patients from diverse backgrounds in relation to protected characteristics such as age, disability, race, or sex?
- How patients were involved in deciding what questions to ask in interviews/ focus groups, rather than being asked to comment only on the wording of questions written by researchers.
- How patients were involved in designing the protocol and patient-facing information from the start; the responses they gave and the changes made as a result.
- How patients would continue to be involved in the project at different stages, with a clear explanation of what input was expected and how it might shape future decisions.
- How have you involved patients in the design and delivery of the dissemination strategy of the research findings?
- Ensure that all public involvement work, including costs of training, is properly costed throughout the project’s life cycle.
Author: Naina Patel Created: March 2020 Last Updated: 2022