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Public Advisory Panel

Consulting a public advisory group can help those leading clinical trials in various ways, for instance in reviewing information designed for participants.

Public contributors offer valuable insights to the researchers and studies in which they are involved. Our Public Advisory Panel provides advice and guidance on the department’s research from initial study proposals to ways in which research findings may be used to influence policy and improve health. By including people who have been research participants and those new to research the panel offers a variety of perspectives. Panel members may be asked to provide feedback, advice and opinions by email, via conference calls or at occasional face-to-face meetings. They can choose which requests to respond to, according to their availability and interests.

Panel members may:

  • review the content and language used in questionnaires and information leaflets for people interested in becoming research study participants
  • help to ensure that proposed research methods are acceptable to potential participants
  • comment on research proposals
  • advise on ways to increase participation in research
  • suggest ways to engage the public around research results.

'No matter how complicated the research, or how brilliant the researcher, patients and the public always offer unique, invaluable insights. Their advice when designing, implementing and evaluating research invariably makes studies more effective, more credible and often more cost efficient as well.'

Professor Dame Sally Davies,
former Chief Medical Officer

Why get involved?

By joining our Public Advisory Panel you will be contributing to our understanding of the causes, prevention and treatment of disease around the world. Members find the role interesting, rewarding and enjoyable, and involvement can provide opportunities to meet new people and develop new and existing skills. We are particularly keen to hear from people with no professional experience in health, research or science. We want your experience of life! If you are interested in joining our panel, please email the Communications Team to find out more.

Related research themes

Aspirin can block the aggregation of blood platelets and in the early 1980s several randomised trials assessed whether it might be able to prevent heart attacks and strokes in people at high risk of such an event. These trials were too small to provide a definitive answer, so we established the Anti-Platelet Trialists’ (APT) Collaboration to conduct a meta-analysis of all such trials.
Aspirin and other Anti-Platelet Drugs
The emergence of new digital technologies is allowing huge quantities of information on health exposures and outcomes to be captured, stored, and analysed using advanced statistical techniques. ‘Big data’ will provide new ways to conduct research and offers the potential of a dramatic increase in the scale and efficiency of clinical studies.
Big Data
Despite improvements in survival in recent decades, cancer remains a major cause of death. The most common types of cancer in males are lung cancer, prostate cancer, colorectal cancer, and stomach cancer, and in females, are breast cancer, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, and cervical cancer.
Cancer
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) includes all the diseases of the heart and circulation such as coronary heart disease, angina, heart attack, congenital heart disease and stroke. Despite improvements in the prevention and treatment of CVD, it remains the leading cause of death worldwide particularly in developed countries.
Cardiovascular Disease
Blood lipids are a major cause of cardiovascular disease. It has been known for some time that higher levels of LDL ("bad") cholesterol and lower levels of HDL cholesterol are associated with higher heart disease risk, but effective treatments to substantially lower LDL cholesterol have only become available in recent decades.
Cholesterol
Degenerative diseases of the brain and nervous system such as dementia, Parkinson’s disease and motor neuron disease, are common and serious health problems of middle and old age.
Dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases
Obesity is a major factor influencing the burden of disease globally. We investigate the impact of obesity on health and on the healthcare system across a range of diseases. Our research into diet and nutrition assesses the environmental determinants of dietary behaviour and models and evaluates population based interventions, such as food labelling and so-called junk food taxes, which aim to promote healthier eating.
Diet, Nutrition and Obesity
Health Economics research explores the economic aspects of health and disease including the determinants of health, the economic consequences of ill health, the costs and benefits of prevention and treatment, and the financing, design and evaluation of health systems.
Healthcare Economics
The translation of medical research into health care practice can present a range of ethical challenges. If ethical and social issues are not identified, analysed and appropriately addressed as research progresses, they have the potential to block the successful completion of the research and its translation into health benefits. In a time of rapid scientific advances and emerging technologies in healthcare, the exploration of the relationships between law, ethics and practice can identify how new technologies may be accommodated within existing legal frameworks and whether these frameworks need to change.
Health Ethics and Law
More than half a million people worldwide have a kidney transplant and many more are waiting for one. People with kidney disease have a much higher risk of developing a number of diseases, particularly cardiovascular disease. In Diabetes Mellitus blood sugar levels are raised over a prolonged period. People with diabetes are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, kidney disease and damage to the eyes. Rates of type-2 diabetes have increased rapidly in recent decades due to changes in diet and other lifestyle factors.
Kidney Disease and Diabetes
Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) were developed over 30 years ago as short self-complete questionnaires to find out about aspects of health of most concern to people. PROMs are increasingly used in clinical trials and since 2009 have been used by the NHS to assess health outcomes of some elective surgical procedures. Their role as a health outcome measure for long-term conditions is likely to be more complex and needs to be assessed.
Patient Reported Outcomes and Experience
Perinatal research aims to improve the health and care of mothers, babies and families. This involves using different methodological approaches with the goal of generating robust research evidence about the causes, consequence and treatment of conditions and exposures during conception, pregnancy and around the time of birth.
Perinatal Health