PIONEER and the Medicines in Acute & Chronic Care Driver Programme were delighted to attend the PEDRI Forum 2026 on 22 September, joining researchers and public contributors from across the United Kingdom to share ideas and promote meaningful public involvement in health data research.
PEDRI (Public Engagement in Data Research Initiative), the network champions good practice in public involvement and helps researchers and public members work together more effectively. The annual forum provides an opportunity to showcase innovative approaches and learn from others working across the health data research community.
Representing PIONEER and the Medicines in Acute & Chronic Care Driver Programme, Dr Suzy Gallier, Deputy Director and Faduma Zahra-Gure, Public Involvement Officer presented a poster on the programme’s Public Involvement Feedback Loop. The approach was developed to ensure that public contributors hear back from researchers about how their input has influenced a project, helping to demonstrate the value and impact of their involvement.
What began as a practical way to strengthen communication has attracted growing interest across the health data research community. Through discussions with colleagues across HDR UK, it became clear that providing structured feedback to public contributors is not yet routine practice in many research programmes. As a result, contributors can often be left wondering how their comments and experiences have helped shape a study.
The poster generated significant interest at the forum, with the PEDRI team expressing a desire to share the feedback loop more widely through the PEDRI Resource Repository. This would allow other research teams to adopt and adapt the approach within their own public involvement activities.
The interest reflects a growing recognition that meaningful public involvement should not end when a workshop, meeting or consultation finishes. Closing the feedback loop helps build trust, demonstrates accountability and shows contributors that their time and expertise are valued. It also encourages researchers to reflect on how public perspectives have influenced their work and how those impacts can be communicated more clearly.
Before sharing the resource nationally, the team plans to review the current approach with public contributors to identify any gaps or opportunities for improvement. This collaborative review will help ensure the feedback process continues to meet the needs of the people it was designed to support.
The forum highlighted the importance of sharing good practice across the research community and showcased how relatively simple changes can make a real difference to the experience of public involvement. PIONEER looks forward to working with PEDRI and colleagues across the United Kingdom to help promote feedback as a core part of meaningful and impactful public involvement in research.
