The progress of lay involvement in the NHS Research and Development Programme

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) in Research
• Research Prioritization and Evaluation

Background:

• The Central Research and Development Committee aims to integrate public perspectives into the NHS R&D Programme.
• Lay involvement is increasingly recognized as crucial across the entire research lifecycle.

Purpose of the Study:

• To showcase recent examples of lay involvement in NHS research.
• To identify challenges and propose solutions for effective patient and public involvement.
• To emphasize the need for evaluating PPI initiatives.

Main Methods:

• Review of innovative approaches to lay involvement in research agenda setting and commissioning.
• Analysis of lay contributions in areas such as maternity care, cancer, HIV, clinical trials, and evidence synthesis.
• Identification of practical obstacles and suggested strategies for overcoming them.

Main Results:

• Successful lay involvement demonstrated in identifying research needs and commissioning processes.
• Lay contributions significantly enhanced information, support, and evidence review across various health domains.
• Challenges include identifying suitable participants, resource limitations, and ensuring adequate support and time for lay contributors.

Conclusions:

• Effective lay involvement requires addressing issues of participant identification, resources, training, and role clarity.
• There is an urgent need to learn from past PPI efforts and establish robust evaluation methods.
• A newly formed advisory group will guide future PPI strategies within the NHS R&D Programme.