NIHR Journals Library Launch 20th June 2013

As promised here’s my speaking notes from the launch of the NIHR Journals Library today.  Good to see the Minister, Earl Howe, there (I tweeted his remarks earlier) plus the CMO, Professor Dame Sally Davies, Trish Edwards, Asst Editor from the BMJ etc.,

• Public involvement in UK health research
• NIHR wedded to public involvement as a core principle from the beginning
• Six years have shaped and defined some common-sense models for involving the public
• Have avoided something that could have been a ‘smothering cloak of acceptability’ instead are close to achieving a ‘partnership focused on improving value and quality.’ But lots still to do.
• Quite literally thousands of patients, carers and others are joined in this endeavour with us (like Leicester yesterday!)
• International leadership – lots of traffic with other countries about public involvement and sense that our developing partnership with the public might just be giving us an edge
• NIHR Journals Library approach is a continuation of this agenda

What the NIHR Journals Library means for patients and the public

Open publication of the complete results….

• Aside from demonstrating how public money has been spent and with what impact, a number key benefits, including one that you might not have thought of on your way here…..
  • Help patients, carers and relatives understand research, indeed the research underpinning care and treatment
  • We know people are increasingly looking for such information and trying to make sense of the mass of info already out there
  • Inform policy-makers and clinicians and support adoption of new and better treatments

Also about helping researchers and patients to better understand how different models of public involvement in research do or do not add value to…

• Building the evidence base around methodology for public involvement
• Important for other journals to begin to follow approach of NIHR Journals Library
• Enabling sharing of knowledge and understanding

The NIHR Journals Library commitment to public involvement

• A plain English summary will accompany all research published in the library
• Authors will be asked to describe patient and public involvement in their study
• Ref INVOLVE work to produce a standard approach to lay summaries across NIHR

From willing to informed research citizen

For selected projects we will also produce stand alone summaries intended for a public audience

One of tasks going forward it to embed public involvement in how the above pieces are produced.

This is just the beginning so watch this space….