DataNB
The latest from the New Brunswick Institute for Research, Data and Training

It has been almost a decade since the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) launched Canada’s national Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR). SPOR views the lived experiences and perspectives of the public (known as “patient partners”) as an untapped skillset vital to conducting relevant and impactful health research. Yet many health researchers remain hesitant when it comes to adopting the main tenets of this approach and to applying them in their own research, some arguing that it is just a trend and that we will soon forget about this and go back to our traditional way of doing research. Launched in 2017, the Continuity of care and support for autistic adults' (CONNECT) project is a research initiative that set out to demonstrate that patient engagement was, in fact, achievable in all manner of health research. In addition to empowering the autistic community and filling a knowledge gap on autism in adulthood, the project provided numerous tools and proofs of concept for further use of PE in health research. During this presentation, Caro will explain how Patient Engagement can transform health research and decision-making. You will learn about the challenges and the pitfalls to avoid, and about the benefits and impact that Patient Engagement.