Patient and public involvement in rheumatology research: embracing the wave of change.

Abstract

Patient partnership in research is crucial to ensure that research priorities align with the priorities of patients. There are various ways in which patients can be integrated into research. 1 National Institute for Health ResearchWhat is public involvement in research?. https://www.invo.org.uk/find-out-more/what-is-public-involvement-in-research-2Date accessed: October 15, 2020 Google Scholar Three facets are important to ensure successful, patient-centred research: patient involvement, patient engagement, and patient participation. All three require long-term investment to nurture patient–researcher and patient–clinician relationships, supported by resources developed by organisations such as INVOLVE, a national advisory group funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) that supports public involvement in research. 1 National Institute for Health ResearchWhat is public involvement in research?. https://www.invo.org.uk/find-out-more/what-is-public-involvement-in-research-2Date accessed: October 15, 2020 Google Scholar While patient and public involvement has been shown to promote higher standards of research 2 Gamble C Dudley L Allam A et al. An evidence base to optimise methods for involving patient and public contributors in clinical trials: a mixed-methods study. Health Serv Deliv Res. 2015; 3 Crossref Google Scholar and improve patient outcomes, 3 Miah J Parsons S Lovell K Starling B Leroi I Dawes P Impact of involving people with dementia and their care partners in research: a qualitative study. BMJ Open. 2020; 10e039321 Crossref PubMed Scopus (6) Google Scholar there is a need to enhance the consistency, quality, and frequency of activities around patient and public involvement. 4 Blackburn S McLachlan S Jowett S et al. The extent, quality and impact of patient and public involvement in primary care research: a mixed methods study. Res Involv Engagem. 2018; 4: 16 Crossref PubMed Scopus (43) Google Scholar