Empowering Communities: A New Chapter in Health Research Partnerships

 

By Nicki Evans, Operational Lead for Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement, Keele University

 

The beginning of March 2023 saw the start of a new and exciting project funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), targeted at community partnerships within research. The project has had a range of partners which have included Expert Citizens, Voluntary Action Stoke-on-Trent (VAST), The University of Leeds and the Impact Accelerator Unit at Keele University. The project’s overarching goal is to bridge the gap between researchers and local communities, ensuring that underserved groups are not just heard but play a central role in shaping research priorities.

 

Creating Strong Community Partnerships

One of the challenges facing researchers is forging genuine connections with communities whose voices often go unheard. The NIHR-funded project recognizes this gap and has set out to address it. There is also the need for local communities to have the time and resources available to engage with research without having to sacrifice core commitments within their organisation to do so. This project has provided the funding to resource communities with an overall aim of building strong community partnerships.

 

The Co-Design Process

From the very beginning, the project recognized the importance of collaboration and co-design. Members from Expert Citizens and Keele University engaged in preliminary meetings to get to know each other, to gain an understanding of the project, foster mutual understanding and co-create the framework for the upcoming discussions. Through these interactions, four key themes emerged as pivotal areas of concern:

• Finding out about health
• Accessibility & language
• Involving people in research
• Partnerships

Members of Expert Citizens and Keele University worked together to develop questions under each theme, providing a foundation for meaningful conversations.

 

Community Conversations and Engagement

The community conversation was held on the 31st March at the Dudson Centre in Hanley, using a setting that was familiar to members. The conversation was led by leaders within Expert Citizens, setting the scene and providing a safe space for conversation that was open to all to participate and enjoy. A rotating group method was used so the conversation had some pace to it and that all members had the opportunity to discuss areas important to them under each of the 4 highlighted themes. The room was buzzing with conversation, and the tables were alive with post it notes, flip charts and pens for the members to capture their thoughts. The session ended with lunch allowing the conversation to continue over curry!

The captured conversation was revisited by the Keele team who were able to see some common threads under each of the themes. The threads were adapted into statements that were used at a proceeding community conversation with members of the community connected to VAST in Fenton. Building on these statements, further insights into the local community’s priorities around health, research and engagement could be captured.

 

Sharing and Future Prospects

A follow up meeting with Expert Citizens was held in July, where information and feedback from both community conversations were shared with the group. There was energy in the room to take this learning to a platform where it can be shared with others, particularly to people and organisations that can support change within the health arena. Creative outcomes will be explored including infographics, vlogs and the use of social media.

 

A Blossoming Partnership

The members of the Impact Accelerator Unit at Keele University have thoroughly enjoyed working alongside Expert Citizens and see this as just the start of their relationship which we hope will grow from strength to strength. The engagement learning from this work is important learning that can be incorporated into funding calls to allow for further work around research engagement to be delivered in partnership between the two organisations. The learning around engagement will be shared with the funding body NIHR to evidence the change needed to ensure that all communities can access and engage in health research. Most importantly we have been given a wonderful opportunity to grow our working relationship with Expert Citizens, to work collaboratively together across health and research projects, to be a trusted partner and to be a sustained member in each other’s work and networks. We look forward to watching this exciting work grow!

 

If you would like to know more about how Expert Citizens can facilitate a Community Conversation for your project, please email sophia.insight@expertcitizens.org.uk

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