Consumers as active partners in research: workshop for researchers

Increasingly funding bodies are making consumer engagement conditional to funding. Engaging with consumers early and often is one of the best ways to ensure your research is supported and relevant and establishing a rapport with ‘end-users’ is vital to successful collaborations.

Some of the most successful research teams are engaging with consumers well before they even decide on their research question.

“As a researcher, understanding the real question and the real problem helps to drive my research, and invigorates my enthusiasm to do better and strive towards the goals that make a difference.”

Presenter

Workshops will be presented by Anne McKenzie AM, consumer advocate and engagement consultant.

Anne is a senior consumer representative on health and research committees and was appointed to the Order of Australia for 20 years of service in the area of health consumer advocacy. In 2021, Anne received the NHMRC Biennial Award for Consumer Engagement Award.

Workshop aims

• Raise awareness of the value and contribution consumers and the community can make to research when involved as active partners
• Develop understanding and skills on the ‘how and why’ of implementing consumer and community involvement
• Identify and address barriers to consumer and community involvement
• Develop plans to start involving consumers and the community as partners in research

Learning outcomes

Participants in this program will:

• Be able to identify why and how consumers and the community can contribute to their research
• Have an awareness of consumer and community perspectives and experiences on being actively involved in research
• Have an awareness of researchers’ perspectives and experiences of working with consumers and the community
• Have knowledge about organisations that are working towards increasing consumer and community involvement in research activities
• Start to consider how the theories and examples of good practice covered in the workshop can be utilised in their research.

This workshop will incur a $100 commitment to attend fee for medical specialists, or $50 for nurses, students, allied health, researchers, trainees and consumers. This is in place to address attrition and partially offsetting the cost of convening the sessions. Please only register if you are available to attend both sessions. There is also an expectation that 1-2 hours of supplied pre-work will be completed prior to the first workshop.

Workshop components

One week prior (week commencing 8 August 2022)
Link shared to pre-work including reading, videos, quizzes.

Friday 19 August 2022
12.00pm - 2.00pm
Online workshop - part 1 

Friday 2 September 2022
12.00pm - 2.00pm
Online workshop - part 2