The patient voice: More than a tick box exercise?

Patient and public involvement (PPI) in healthcare professional education is important, yet publications often provide insufficient detail about the types of involvement patients undertake and the level of autonomy that they have. This study details the factors that promote or hinder PPI within a university healthcare professional education setting and the types of activities members conducted.

PPI activities were described and mapped against a framework for PPI in healthcare professional education. Semi-structured interviews with PPI group members explored the motivators, enablers and barriers that influence involvement.

The framework highlighted that the PPI group were involved in a range of activities, yet they received limited training for their role and were infrequently involved in planning the activities. When interviewed, PPI members did not consider that these factors were the important promoters or barriers to involvement, instead emphasising five themes: (1) their individual characteristics, (2) factors relating to the university organisation, (3) relationships between themselves, faculty and students, (4) time in their role and (5) evidence of their impact.

Supporting PPI members whilst working, rather than provision of formal training was considered most empowering for group members. This was mediated through having enough time in their role to develop supportive relationships with faculty, which in turn promoted self-confidence and increased autonomy. This should be considered when making PPI appointments. Small changes in processes during education planning can make it easier for PPI members to bring their own agenda forward and promote equity during education decision making.