Fuse joins pledge to put public involvement at the heart of our work

Fuse, the Centre for Translational Research in Public Health, and a host of health and social care organisations across the UK have come together in a bid to improve public involvement in research.

Fuse has signed up to the Shared Commitment to Public Involvement in Health and Social Care Research, launched by the Health Research Authority to bring about changes that will drive up standards in health and social care research.

More than twenty national health organisations across the UK have signed the Shared Commitment, including the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), NHS England, and Universities UK.

By becoming a partner, Fuse demonstrates its commitment to placing public involvement and engagement at the heart of its research activities. Fuse values public involvement and engagement as a vital part of its mission to get high-quality research into the world to improve people's health.

The public voice - which includes service users, carers, advocates, communities and the wider public - influences Fuse work by helping us to:

• Prioritise areas of research
• Better understand how to deliver research
• Better interpret research findings and results
• Improve how research findings and results are shared.

“I'm thrilled that Fuse is joining the Shared Commitment to Public Involvement in Health and Social Care Research,” says Professor Sheena Ramsay, Director of Fuse. "Public engagement is essential to ensure our research is relevant, impactful, and truly meets the needs of the communities we serve. By incorporating public voices throughout the research process, from prioritising research areas to disseminating findings, we can ensure our work is high-quality and has a positive real-world impact on people's health.”

Ella Anderson, Fuse Public Involvement and Engagement Manager, added: “Fuse is proud to show its commitment to public involvement, placing it at the centre of public health research in the North East and Cumbria. Inclusive and meaningful public involvement is crucial. It empowers people and communities to shape important decisions that directly impact daily life, fostering transparency, accountability, and ultimately, trust in health research. It ensures diverse perspectives are considered, leading to more informed and equitable decisions that reflect the needs and the values of the communities research is designed to serve.”

Matt Westmore, HRA Chief Executive, said: “We launched the Shared Commitment with other leading organisations, to raise the profile, value and importance of public involvement in health and social care research.

“Together we are sending a very strong message to the research system that public involvement in the design and delivery of research is essential and must be taken seriously.”

The Shared Commitment statement

The statement, signed by leaders at each organisation, reads:

Public involvement is important, expected and possible in all types of health and social care research.

Together, our organisations and members fund, support and regulate health and social care research. This statement is our joint commitment to improve the extent and quality of public involvement across the sector so that it is consistently excellent.

People have the right to be involved in all health and social care research. Excellent public involvement is an essential part of health and social care research and has been shown to improve its quality and impact. People’s lived experiences should be a key driver for health and social care research.

Good quality public involvement is inclusive, values all contributions and ensures people have a meaningful say in what happens and influences outcomes, as set out in the UK Standards for Public Involvement.

Working together with a growing partnership of organisations, we will support the research community to carry out excellent public involvement. We will provide or share guidance, policies, systems, and incentives. We will:

• Listen to and learn from the people and communities we involve and apply and share that learning
• Build and share the evidence of how to involve the public and the impact this has
• Support improvements in equality, diversity, and inclusion in public involvement
• Promote the UK Standards for Public Involvement

We will embed this commitment into the decision-making processes of our organisations.

Find out more

About Fuse and Public Involvement and Engagement or email Ella Anderson, Fuse Public Involvement and Engagement Manager: eleanor.aderson@ncl.ac.uk.

Find out why the Shared Commitment to Public Involvement in Health and Social Care Research was launched.

You can read more about the Shared Commitment to Public Involvement here.

Our partners who have signed the shared commitment:

• The Academy of Medical Sciences
• The Association of Medical Research Charities
• The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry
• Bristol Health Partners
• Cancer Research UK
• Cochrane
• Health and Care Research Wales
• Health and Social Care Northern Ireland
• Health Data Research UK
• Health Foundation
• Health Research Authority
• International Patient and Public Involvement Network
• Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency
• National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement
• National Institute for Health and Care Research
• National Institute for Health and Care Research Innovation Observatory
• NHS England
• NHS Research Scotland
• NIHR Applied Research Collaboration East of England
• NIHR Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) North East and North Cumbria
• The Patient's Association
• Universities UK
• UK Research and Innovation

Last modified: Mon, 13 May 2024 14:52:53 BST