Safer Management of Multiple Long-Term Conditions in Disadvantaged Communities PPIE Blog series

Being involved in PPIE has had nothing but positive impacts for me. Through the Youth Forum and YPAG, I have been able to be involved with countless research projects, I have been part of teams helping researchers target their work to children and young people, as well as contributing with what may be more or less beneficial for their work. Although I have worked with multiple researchers and staff, I have always felt heard and listened to. It has been so important to me to hear that young people are getting a chance to influence things that are targeted towards them.

Whilst there have been different styles of presentations, the structure I prefer is a brief introduction that explains the project in terms I can understand. It’s important that I am able to understand how the research is intended to help people, in order to offer the best advice. I find that open-ended questions work best, as they allow the young people to be able to fully express their views, which can lead to new ideas or conversation topics that researchers hadn’t previously considered. It is also helpful to have the choice of giving input anonymously, as that has allowed me to give more insight that I wouldn’t feel comfortable sharing publicly.

My experience of PPIE has given me a greater understanding of research. It has allowed me to understand the different methods used to gather data, as well as showing me just how wide an array of areas, even just within the medical world, can be benefited by research and PPIE.

My involvement has helped me develop more problem-solving skills, as I am often faced with questions and topics I have never considered before, meaning that each time I need to think of different ways something could be done or improved upon. This is also transferable to other areas of life and will continue to benefit me as I go through the world, as I am now already used to thinking in different ways in order to help to the best of my abilities.

Working with young people like Tynara in PPIE work is incredibly important. PPIE allows members of the public to help shape research and gives them the opportunity to have more insight into the research process. I have found that involving PPIE enriches research projects greatly, and the value PPIE can have, not only for the research itself, but also for public contributors, should not be underestimated.