School of Health Sciences and Social Work

At the School of Health Sciences and Social Work (University of Portsmouth) we are committed to involving members of the public in the research we undertake.

In principle, anyone can join Engage, as we are interested in recruiting people who use health and social care services. You can be a patient, a carer, or a member of a voluntary organisation. In addition, those who are involved with organisations that represent the interests of people who use health and social care services can join Engage.

Engage is also involved with the new Research Design Service South Central, making sure that there is public and patient involvement in all aspects of health and social care research within the wider South Central Strategic Health Authority locality (RDS SC).

What it involves

Being a member of Engage offers you the opportunity to get involved with a research project as much or as little as you want. You might like to help by giving your view at the inception and planning stage, or you might like to be involved in designing questionnaires, conducting interviews etc. There is support and training available to enable you to make your experience a valuable resource.

Project examples

The School of Health Sciences and Social Work and the Research Design Service South Central are involved in a range of research topics. Most of the research projects are externally funded by organisations such as research charities, Department of Health etc.

We have a growing number of research students studying for their doctorates who are conducting research projects within the school.

As an example one of the projects we are currently undertaking is the ‘HIPHOP (Helping Injury Prevention in Hospitalised Older People) Research Project’, which is looking at the use of innovative shock-absorbing flooring to help reduce injuries from falls in older people whilst in hospital.We are very pleased that Engage members are part of the steering committee for this project.

Another project that looked at ways of improving the quality of life for children with speech and language difficulties has benefited greatly from the involvement of a member of Engage who helped shape this project from the beginning by helping us to develop the research tools and by joining the advisory committee for the study.

In addition, Engage members can be involved with the research our postgraduate students plan to conduct by reviewing their proposed dissertations, in order to advise on the relevance of their chosen topics from the perspective of users and consumers. It is hoped that with Engage's involvement with the Research Design Service South Central, there will be even greater opportunities to get involved in health and social care research across the region.

Support

Members of Engage will have the opportunity to receive some training about the basics of research, and then ongoing support and training will be provided for specific projects and roles.

Members of Engage will also be invited to attend:

  • Staff and student presentations
  • School of Health Sciences & Social Work’s monthly Research Seminars
  • Research Design Service South Central Training Workshops
  • Research Conference

How to join

If you are interested, please contact us at:

Tel: +44 (0)23 9284 5601

Email: engage@port.ac.uk

Address: School of Health Sciences and Social Work, Room 0.302, James Watson Hall (West), 2 King Richard 1st Road, Portsmouth, PO1 2FR