Best practice in public and patient involvement
Posted on Tuesday 12 May 2026
Professor Bob Phillips from CRD has taken part in a recent webinar exploring how public and patient involvement and engagement (PPIE) can move beyond a compliance exercise to become a genuine partnership that improves research design, recruitment and outcomes.
The panel explored what good and bad PPIE looks like across sectors, how to build trust, and how to involve people proportionately and ethically across the life of a study. Key themes from the discussion included:
- Starting involvement early, while real decisions are still open;
- Being clear about the scope of influence and feeding back what changed;
- Designing involvement around people’s real lives, not academic convenience;
- Investing in clarity, usability and trusted networks to support diverse participation.
The panel comprised of: Dr Angela Polanco, National Head of Public Partnerships, NIHR; Kate Harvey, Head of Participant and Public Involvement, Our Future Health; Naho Yamazaki, Deputy Director of Policy and Partnership, Health Research Authority; Suzanne Bird, Recruitment Strategist, Pfizer; and, Professor Bob Phillips, Professor of Paediatrics and Evidence Synthesis, University of York and Hull York Medical School; Honorary Consultant in Paediatric and TYA Oncology, Leeds Children’s Hospital; Director, Candlelighters Supportive Care Research Centre.