Public engagement and involvement in health research is now a global phenomenon. It can help improve the quality and relevance of research and is increasingly required by research funders from across the world. But how well do we really 'do' public engagement and involvement in research in different parts of the world? The UK has a long history of these type of activities, but do they provide the benchmark for best practice? Researchers in South Africa are making significant efforts to tackle the nation’s health challenges and community engagement plays a critical role, but are they approaching it the right way? What can we learn from each other to help us improve?

In these videos, originally part of the Cochrane Learning Live and International PPI Network webinar series, you will hear from speakers from the UK and South Africa with experience of running and taking part in public engagement and involvement projects.They share their experiences of the progress that has been made as well as putting forward the problems and issues with the processes that are yet to be resolved. 

The webinar was delivered in July 2020 and organised through a collaboration between the International PPI Network, the NIHR Global Health Programme and the Mesh Community Engagement Network. Mesh is a collaborative open-access webspace and networking project for people working in community engagement in low- and middle-income countries. 

Below you will find the videos from the webinar, together with accompanying slides to download [PDF].

Part 1: Community Engagement and Involvement and the NIHR Global Health Research Programme 
Part 2: Community Engagement and Involvement: Views from the global south 
Part 3: Community Engagement and Involvement: Views from the global north
Part 4: Questions and answers 

Presenter Bios

Dr Gary Hickey is a Senior Public Involvement Manager at the Wessex Institute, and the Patient and Public Involvement Strategic Lead for the Research Design Service South East in the UK. His key interests are co-production and international patient and public involvement in research.

Doreen Tembo currently works as the Senior Research Manager for Patient and Public Involvement and External Review at the NIHR Evaluations Trials and Studies Coordinating Centre.

Kati Turner is a survivor researcher at the Population Health Research Institute at St George’s, University of London. Kati has a particular interest in patient and public involvement, co-production and collaborative partnerships and evaluating the impact of these on the research process and findings. She also undertakes freelance work in the public and patient involvement field, including the Research Design Service.

Dr Anastasia Koch is the co-founder of Eh!woza, a South African-based organisation that engages young people with the biomedicine of TB, HIV and other relevant diseases, and then provides a platform to tell stories about the personal and social impact of these diseases. She maintains a part-time role at the University of Cape Town (UCT) researching TB pathobiology.

Nabeel Petersen is a participatory/storytelling facilitator focused on developing inclusive collaborations and co-design processes, to challenge traditional research-engagement structures and programming. He is the co-founder of the South African-based NPO the Pivot Collective, focused on egalitarian collaborations, knowledge translation and research decolonization, and the Director of Interfer, a company focused on storytelling and research. 

Richard Morley, Chair, Cochrane's Consumer Engagement Officer