PPI 2015 Unit II

Researchers often struggle to know how to begin and where to find people to involve in their research. The first step is to consider who to involve. Do they need to be patients with a particular condition, people of a particular age, or will a generic lay perspective suffice? The answer will influence how you find people to involve. Finding people with a common illness such as asthma or diabetes is relatively easy compared with finding people with a rare condition because the pool of people is larger and there are more voluntary sector organisations which can be approached to identify people.

Contacting lay people without a specific health condition requires a different set of contacts, such as community groups, and may require some advertising. 

A clear, concise role description in lay language is advisable, making the time commitment clear, so people will know what to expect.

There are more strategies for finding people to involve in the guide for researchers you read for Unit 1 Lesson 1.