Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) – Institute of Global Health Innovation

Celebrating Women at IGHI: Driving Meaningful Change in Global Health

6 March 2025

On International Women’s Day, we shine a spotlight on the incredible women at the Institute of Global Health Innovation (IGHI) who are shaping the future of healthcare worldwide. From pioneering research to innovative policy work, these leaders are tackling some of the most pressing global health challenges —making a real difference in in the UK and beyond.

IGHI group photo — Group photo of IGHI staff at the summer social.

In this blog, we celebrate their achievements and highlight how their expertise and dedication continue to inspire change. Read on to learn about some of these fantastic women at the IGHI and discover key examples of their work.

Professor Bryony Dean Franklin – Visiting Professor at IGHI

Professor Bryony Dean Franklin is visiting Professor in the Department of Surgery and Cancer at the Centre for Prevention and Management at Imperial College. She is Director of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) North West London Patient Safety Research Collaboration (NWL PSRC), leading research in medication patient safety and the safe use of technology.

Professor Franklin is widely recognised as a research leader within patient safety, both nationally and internationally. She has specific expertise in evaluating technologies that aim to reduce medication errors in both primary and secondary care. She led a recent revision of the World Health Organization’s Medication Safety Curriculum Guide and has recently contributed to collaborative research and quality improvement studies in Brazil, India and Finland. As Co-Editor-in-Chief of the journal BMJ Quality and Safety she seeks to support and encourage others in publishing high-quality research and opinions that seek to improve patient care the world over.

Jennifer Bennett – Senior Postgraduate Administrator

Jennifer Bennett is a Senior Postgraduate Administrator for the PG Dip and MSc Digital Health Leadership (DHL) Programmes. She is responsible for the day-to-day administration of the programmes, supporting the students from recruitment to award and all the processes in between, working closely with faculty and teaching fellows to make sure the students get the best academic and pastoral support.

Jenny gained a new perspective on the student experience last year when she completed a L3 Team Leader qualification (CMI). She particularly enjoyed learning about leadership and communication models and evaluating how she could apply them to her work. This echoes the workplace assessments which the PG Dip students are doing, applying theory to practice. The PG students on the DHL programmes are all balancing work, study and personal or family commitments and Jenny has even greater empathy for students with looming deadlines! She is pleased to have achieved a Distinction. One of the projects she reflected on was the 2024 refurbishment of the office environment of 1070 at QEQM which has become a more inviting space for collaboration with colleagues.

Recently Jenny has introduced some processes to streamline the administration of benchmarking assessments and bulk uploading feedback to the VLE. She is also looking forward to contributing on further working parties to identify Imperial’s new VLE.

Melanie Leis – Director of Policy and Analysis

Melanie Leis is the Director of Policy and Analysis of the Centre for Health Policy, part of the IGHI. She leads the Centre’s development of analytics tools and policy outputs to support global decision-makers in fields such as patient safety, digital health and mental health.

Melanie leads our partnership with WHO’s Global Patient Safety Collaborative, which provides an opportunity to develop global and country-specific patient safety leadership support and resources. She also leads our collaboration with the charity Mental Health Innovations to deliver policy reports that highlight the key role that digital mental health services play in supporting the UK population. One of the projects she is most proud of is the collaboration with the charity Patient Safety Watch, through which IGHI produces reports on the national and global state of patient safety. The annual launch events of the reports bring together national and global patient safety leaders, including patients. These reports and events ensure that patient safety is at the top of system leaders’ agendas.

Jodie Chan – Public Involvement Officer, Helix Centre

Jodie Chan is a Public Involvement Officer at the IGHI’s Helix Centre, working on projects around safely involving women experiencing homelessness in research, understanding the mental health experiences and support needs of 10- to 13-year-olds, and analysing the impact of long waiting times on patients and the health system.

Jodie works across IGHI to support the meaningful involvement of patients, carers, and public members in research. Within her work, she has a strong focus on deepening and diversifying IGHI’s relationships with its local community and is passionate about supporting community-led research.

She is particularly proud of the relationships she has built with women at the Marylebone Project, a local women’s homelessness service, and of their ongoing work to make research safer and more psychologically informed.

Jessica Shields – Impact Officer, Helix Centre

Jessica Shields is an Impact Officer at the IGHI’s Helix Centre, working across the Centre to keep it running smoothly. Jess works on everything from supporting the scaling up of Helix projects and looking for funding opportunities to communications and coordinating Helix events. Jess also co-chairs the IGHI Wellbeing Working group, heading iniatives to improve workplace wellbeing at IGHI.

Jess is proud to support the Helix team to bring design to healthcare and being involved in the Wellbeing Working Group at IGHI. A particular highlight has been bringing the Helix team together over games and food for the Christmas All-Staff meeting and supporting team members to find funding for projects they’re passionate about.

Dr Jang Ah Kim – Lecturer at the Hamlyn Centre

Dr Jang Ah Kim is a Lecturer at the Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery, Department of Mechanical Engineering. She is interested in researching multidisciplinary approaches to understanding and controlling the interactions between materials and their surrounding environments at the micro/nanoscale. By leveraging this knowledge, she aims to develop innovative and highly precise, minimally invasive strategies for biomedical sensing and robotics, addressing challenges unique to these scales.

The mini lab (micro-nano innovation lab) that Dr Kim leads is built on the belief that big breakthroughs start small. The lab focuses on micro and nano-scale engineering, exploring how light and other physical stimuli interact with materials to push the frontiers of biomedical sensing, soft robotics, and healthcare technologies. The name mini lab itself reflects this vision—written in lowercase to symbolise its commitment to micro/nano-scale research and precision-driven, minimally invasive healthcare solutions, where even the smallest changes can lead to transformative impact. Through this work, Dr Kim and her team strive to bridge fundamental science with real-world applications, advancing the next generation of biomedical engineering solutions.

Although newly established in September 2023, the mini lab has already embarked on exciting foundational research in manipulating micro/nanoparticles and bacterial swarms using light, as well as engineering shape-changing microrobots. These efforts aim to lay the groundwork for novel applications in personalised medicine, such as targeted drug delivery, cellular-level surgery, and local immunotherapy. In the long run, these highly targeted and efficient biomedical solutions could also contribute to addressing broader clinical challenges, including optimising therapeutic strategies and reducing unnecessary antibiotic use, ultimately supporting efforts to tackle antimicrobial resistance—all of which resonate with IGHI’s vision for advancing global healthcare innovation.

Dr Ana Cruz Ruiz — Project Manager, Hamlyn Centre

Dr Ana Cruz Ruiz is the Project Manager at the Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery, where she coordinates centre-wide projects across various Technology Readiness Levels, ranging from basic research to medtech translation initiatives. In addition to this role, she leads the Hamlyn Centre’s Global Surgery working group, which focuses on how frontier technologies—such as AI, robotics, 3D printing, and the Internet of Things—can enhance surgical care in low- and middle-income countries.

One of her recent achievements includes organising the Global Surgery Forum at the Hamlyn Symposium 2024, where she co-moderated a panel with Dr Kee Park, Director of Policy & Advocacy at Harvard Medical School. The session, titled “Can Technology and Innovation Help Improve Health Equity?”, addressed the challenges faced by low- or middle-income countries in accessing safe, affordable surgical and anaesthesia care. The panel explored how technology is already helping to address some of these barriers, while also emphasising the need for further collaboration with the engineering community to create scalable solutions.

Ana is passionate about improving health equity in Honduras and in Latin America. Recently, she travelled there to meet with local surgeons, learn about regional needs, and explore ways to collaborate on making surgical care more accessible. She also contributes as a member of the Advisory Council for Honduras’ 2026 National Human Development Report, organised by the United Nations Development Programme.

Georgia Butterworth – Senior Strategy Advisor to Lord Darzi

Georgia Butterworth is a Senior Strategy Advisor to Lord Darzi, supporting the delivery of his wide-ranging portfolio across academic, policy and parliamentary priorities. In this role, she provides strategic advice and coordination across a diverse range of projects, from the Fleming Initiative to the NHS Independent Investigation. Her work is dynamic and varied, often requiring close collaboration with colleagues across the IGHI to ensure alignment across its centres.

One of the best things about my role is seeing the great achievements of the different centres in the IGHI and thinking about how we bring it all together for greatest impact. I find it really exciting to contribute to shaping the future of health and care through the IGHI, and inspiring to work alongside many exceptional women in this field.

Jessica Newberry Le Vay – Climate Change and Health Policy Fellow

Jessica Newberry Le Vay is a Climate Change and Health Policy Fellow in the Climate Cares Centre, working on the interconnections between climate change and mental health. Jess recently worked on the Connecting Climate Minds Global Research and Action Agenda, bringing together the perspectives of 960 experts across 100 countries to set out global priorities for climate change and mental health research and a vision for implementing and translating that research to action. Jess was also recently part of developing the People’s Petition, a global collective climate justice call submitted to the International Court of Justice in December 2024 that amplifies the testimonies of 18 witnesses from communities experiencing and responding to the worst impacts of the climate crisis, including impacts to physical and mental health.

Jess currently leads The Compass Project: Guiding minds and inspiring action through climate change education, working with young people and educators in schools and universities to ensure climate change education can equip and support young people with the resilience, knowledge, skills and agency to take climate action and live in an uncertain future.

Dr Emma Lawrance – Climate Cares Centre Lead

Dr Emma Lawrance is the Climate Cares Centre Lead and Mental Health Lead at the IGHI. Emma also leads the Wellcome-funded global initiative Connecting Climate Minds, which has involved over 1000 people across 100 countries to date. She holds an AXA Climate and Health Fellowship to more deeply understand the experiences of young people in the climate crisis in different cultures, what this means for their mental health and wellbeing, and to co-design and evaluate support that can build agency and resilience.

Emma is a recognised global leader in the emerging climate and mental health field, building awareness and capacity across sectors and countries to acknowledge and act for a climate of health and wellbeing. She is an author of key research and policy papers on the topic, including: the first global policy brief; leading reviews of the field as a whole, relevant interventions, and temperature and mental health; studies with young people in the UK, Caribbean and the US (under review), and the Global Research and Action Agenda for climate change and mental health. She has presented globally, for instance at the World Economic Forum, four UNFCCC COP conferences, the World Congress of Psychiatry, OECD and the European Commission and been featured in international media, including Die Zeit, Guardian, Al Jazeera, Sky News, BBC, Forbes, Reuters and others.

She believes in the power of community, and in connecting people and ideas to foster resilience to thrive in a changing world and to create a safer climate for our mental health.

Dr Laura-Maria Horga – Communications and Events Officer

Dr Laura-Maria Horga is a Health Communications and Events Officer at IGHI. She delivers communications and engagement projects across IGHI’s seven research centres of excellence, supporting the Institute’s mission to tackle global health challenges.

Laura has contributed to key projects, including the National State of Patient Safety Report 2024, which gained prominent media coverage for highlighting critical maternity care issues; the Mental Health Innovations Report, which explores digital solutions to meet growing mental health needs (Shout service); the Great Exhibition Road Festival; the Julia Anderson Training Programme; Connecting Climate Minds; the Digital Health Leadership Programme; and many others.

She is currently leading the organisation of IGHI’s annual in-person event, Demo Day, which helps staff learn more about the different workstreams at IGHI, connect with colleagues, foster collaborations, and celebrate the Institute’s achievements.

Laura is also a certified Mental Health First Aider at Imperial College London.

Dr Ivet Angelova – Research Associate

Dr Ivet Angelova has recently joined the MedTechOne programme at Imperial College London as a MedTech Specialist. Her journey into healthtech began with a PhD in Chemical Engineering, where she focused on developing genetically encoded biosensors for monitoring Botulinum Neurotoxins—a project that deepened her passion for turning scientific discovery into practical healthcare solutions.

Shaping the future of healthcare means not only driving research and innovation but also ensuring it reaches those who need it most. As part of MedTechOne, Ivet is currently working towards building a knowledge base that equips early career researchers (ECRs) with the tools to translate medtech discoveries into real-world impact. This resource is shaped by the needs and feedback of researchers across IGHI, the Hamlyn Centre and the wider Imperial community. Covering everything from regulations and quality standards to commercialisation and team building, this resource is designed to help bridge the gap between research and commercialisation. Additionally, she is co-leading the launch of the MedTech ECR Network at Imperial, creating a space for emerging medtech leaders to connect, collaborate, and thrive.

Ivet said “This International Women’s Day is a chance to celebrate the women driving healthcare forward, breaking barriers, and shaping a future where innovation is inclusive, impactful, and accessible to all. I am grateful to be part of a community filled with inspiring women whose work and determination continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in medtech and beyond.”

Cohort 7 Trainees – Julia Anderson (JA) Training Programme

Caitlin Murphy is as a JA Behavioural Science Trainee in the Fleming Initiative team. She is working in a patient / public facing project focusing on the use of antibiotics and encouraging individuals to finish a course of antibiotics if prescribed.

Arlette Albert is another JA Behavioural Science Trainee in the Fleming Initiative team. She is working part-time alongside Caitlin to develop her skills in qualitative research, behavioural science, patient engagement, and co-designing interventions.

Miranda Watson joined as the JA Trainee in Digital Health. She is working in the Patient Safety team to develop her skills in translating evidence into measurable interventions to improve patient safety in virtual care. She is involved in reviewing the literature, extracting data, and critically appraising available literature to identify safety indicators relevant to virtual consultations.

Supporting the safe and meaningful involvement of women experiencing homelessness in research

Laura Horga

12 November 2024

Members of the research team from IGHI and the Marylebone Project having lunch

IGHI recently received funding from the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) for an 18-month project in partnership with the Marylebone Project and Central London Healthcare which focuses on supporting the safe and meaningful involvement of women experiencing homelessness in research.

People experiencing homelessness have shorter life expectancies, poorer physical and mental health, and less access to healthcare than the general population. For women experiencing homelessness, the average age of death is 43 – two years younger than men and nearly half the life expectancy of women in the general population. Many homeless women are survivors of abuse, and more research is needed to provide specialised, female-led support for this group in safe, trauma-informed spaces.

However, the Marylebone Project told us that current research practices can be harmful for the women who take part. Short-term projects where researchers ask participants to answer personal questions and recount traumatic events without taking the time to build trust and rapport do not offer a safe environment for women to authentically share their experiences.

To address this, we have worked together to develop a project which aims to understand how we can meaningfully involve women experiencing homelessness in the design and delivery of our research to ensure it is relevant and safe for participants, while also protecting the mental wellbeing of the women and researchers involved. To do this, we will draw on the psychologically informed practices used by frontline homeless services to protect the mental wellbeing of their service users and staff.

Below, Miriam Kennedy and Chatsuda Chierakul, lead applicants for the project, share what makes this project special and what they hope to get out of it.

Miriam is Centre Manager at the Marylebone Project, the UK’s oldest and largest women’s homelessness organisation with 112 beds and a women’s-only drop in that’s open 24/7, 365 days a year. Chatsuda is a general practitioner and the Training, Education, and Research Lead for Central London Healthcare, a federation of 33 general practices in Westminster caring for over 275,000 patients.

Why did you want to be part of this project?

Miriam: At the Marylebone Project, we deeply value women’s experiences of the world, and we aim to give space for women to use their voice and share these experiences. We support women who are impacted by homelessness and crisis, and they are often hidden in the stats regarding homelessness in the UK. Women face very unique challenges in regard to homelessness. We know how important research is in order to stop homelessness and violence against women, and we wanted to be part of a project which would be holistic, psychologically informed, and where women were at the heart of the research.

Chatsuda: Two of Central London Healthcare’s practices are homelessness practices, and London has the largest homeless population in Europe. Several of our practices are also located in and around the Marylebone area. As primary health care professionals, we are somewhat aware of the difficulties facing women experiencing homelessness, and we already do work with other organisations including adult safeguarding leads and IRIS advocate educators to try to improve the care we offer, but there is still plenty of room for improvement. There is also a significant lack of research with this population, and this project looks at how this can be changed.

What makes this project different from research projects you’ve been part of in the past?

Miriam: I think the main difference is time. So far, our women have been offered much more time and care in this research project. Their ideas, experiences, and stories have not been plucked from them to fill in stats in Excel sheets. Instead, there has been open conversation; safe spaces and hospitality have been offered. Women have felt very safe and the sessions together so far have been more about sharing and listening than accumulating data. Women have left the sessions feeling heard and seen.

Chatsuda: At Central London Healthcare, we have been involved in an extremely wide variety of research projects. We have been involved in some trials which have been open to people experiencing homelessness, but this project is different in that it is designed specifically for women experiencing homelessness, and it is a collaboration between many different organisations who haven’t worked directly together before.

What do you hope to learn and achieve through this project?

Miriam: Our aim is that our women will feel empowered to share their experiences, know their value, and gain knowledge and understanding of how research can be offered in a way which nurtures and cares for the participants. We aim to highlight the issues women face in healthcare and for positive change to be made.

Chatsuda: Ultimately, we all want to be able to improve care and wellbeing for women experiencing homelessness. Enabling research with this population would help with that goal. By reaching out to these women in an approachable way, this should help us better understand what would make the biggest different for them.

Involving community members to help people attend their hospital appointments

Inaaya Kaul

13 September 2024

Attending hospital appointments is essential for patients to access the medical care they need to maintain and improve their health. Across North West London, individuals living in the most deprived areas and from ethnic minority groups face a variety of barriers to attending outpatient appointments at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. The focus of this collaborative project between IGHI’s Helix Centre and the Trust was to understand why people miss their appointments and to co-design solutions with community members that help them to attend.

Going to the first outpatient appointment can help prevent a chain reaction of health inequity. By attending diagnostic appointments (such as scans), individuals help to ensure timely diagnoses and interventions, which can lead to better health outcomes and more effective treatment and management of their conditions. Trust data showed that people living in the most deprived areas of North West London or people part of a Black, Mixed or Other ethnic groups are more likely to miss their outpatient appointment. In this project, we worked with local community members throughout the project, who were linked to these groups, to ensure the project and any intervention were designed appropriately.

Meet one of the Public Steering Group members

“My name is Phayza and I am a community member involved with Imperial College and as part of the Strategic Lay Forum at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. I was one of the eight people recruited to the Public Steering Group, bringing together diverse voices to shape the project.

“As someone deeply involved in community development and public health promotion, I was eager to contribute my insights to this initiative. My background gave me a unique perspective on the systemic issues faced by minority and disadvantaged populations in accessing healthcare. This opportunity was not just a professional duty but a personal mission to amplify the voices of those often unheard.” – Phayza, Public Steering Group member

Phayza (left-hand side) and other community members at one of the co-design workshops

Gathering insights from people who had missed appointments

The Helix Centre team interviewed over 25 patients who had missed appointments in several clinical specialties and staff to understand why people could not attend. Through these interviews, we learned that various factors contribute to why someone might miss an appointment, including caring responsibilities, work responsibilities, travel difficulties, distrust with the NHS and communication issues (such as not receiving appointment details via text or letter). We are sharing these findings as widely as possible with relevant groups. The Helix team shared the barriers back to Trust staff to ensure that they were aware of the issues faced by their patients. We recently published an academic paper outlining the barriers, co-author by a Public Steering Group member, Chris. We also worked with the Public Steering Group to design a poster (below) that visually communicates the attendance barriers, which we are sharing with public members involved in the project and a wider audience.

Moving from barriers to solutions

Poster titled: What makes it harder for patients to attend hospital appointments? It visually depicts the seven barriers that public members highlighted and describes what Imperial has done with these learnings. — Poster titled ”What makes it harder for patients to attend hospital appointments?”. It visually depicts the seven barriers that public members highlighted and describes what Imperial College London has done with these learnings. Credits: Pip Batey

We ran three co-design workshops with local community members from groups facing inequity, to come up with ideas that address the barriers people face attending hospital appointments. We worked with the Public Steering Group to decide which barriers should be prioritised and brought to the workshops, along with reviewing the workshop materials to ensure they were engaging. The workshops were held in local community spaces that people were familiar with, for example the White City Community Centre. The Public Steering Group helped with recruitment for the workshops, by promoting it in local networks, such as the Black and Minority Ethnic Forum newsletter (which Phayza is linked to). A diverse range of people with different knowledge and experience participated alongside NHS staff, with everyone learning from each other. Of the 23 workshop attendees, 16 were from ethnic minority groups and 9 lived in the most deprived areas of North West London.

“What I liked most about the workshops was working together and being very listened to. I appreciated all the effort which had been put into them” – Workshop attendee

The workshops were a melting pot of ideas and experiences. Building on the barriers we heard from initial interviews, people shared and discussed the issues they and their family members had faced attending hospital appointments and proposed solutions. At the next workshop, we developed the ideas further and had to think about whether the idea was feasible. For the prioritised ideas, we further developed what they could look like and shared this back to the workshop attendees for their feedback.

Testing the final ideas in a research study

The ideas taken forward from the workshops address barriers around paying for transport, travelling to appointments and fear of attending appointments. The solutions we developed include extra message reminders sent to patients before their appointments, which connect them to clearly designed web pages with information about how to get to their appointment, whether they’re eligible for travel cost reimbursement or what to expect at their appointment. We are testing these additional tailored reminders in a research study to see if they help people to attend their appointments and plan to roll out any successful changes across Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.

Highlighting the impact of public involvement

The Public Steering Group influenced the project throughout, from reviewing interview questions to co-designing the language used in the texts and websites sent to patients in the study. When we were planning the interviews, Mohamed (a member of the Public Steering Group) reviewed the interview guide and suggested that we might have more success with recruitment if we talk about the impact the study could have at the start of the conversation with the patient instead of at the end.

“By beginning with the wonderful impact the study could have that you have given in the end it may in my opinion give the researcher a soft landing and a willing-to-participate interviewee/patient.” – Mohamed, Public Steering Group member

When we were prioritising themes to take the workshop, the Public Steering Group raised transport as a critical barrier to attending hospital appointments, initially not prioritised by the team. This suggestion significantly shaped the project’s direction, resulting in several final interventions aimed at improving support around transport.

Another example of a key recommendation from the group, was to ensure that appointment reminders that are being sent as part of the research study include a phone number for patients to call if they have questions or need to reschedule their appointment. This simple addition ensures that people without access to digital tools can still manage their appointments effectively. Another suggestion was to soften the language in the study’s appointment reminders to adopt a more supportive tone that encourages patients to attend.

“We suggested to change the text message language to ‘Let’s make it easy for you to plan your journey’ to make it warm and supportive” – Phayza, Public Steering Group member

Unfortunately not all of the ideas generated from the workshops could be taken forward, such as having ‘community health navigators’ supporting people with rescheduling or attending their appointments. However, we shared all the ideas back to Imperial NHS Trust to see if they could be adopted in other projects, and the Trust are continuing to use the insights from the project as part of their work to improve outpatient experience for patients.

Learning from this approach

We came up with several ideas about how the approach could have been improved, and have applied these changes in more recent projects with Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. The team had organised paid childcare for one of the workshops which was during the half term school break, to allow parents to bring their children to the workshop. However, we could have also made this even clearer when advertising the workshops along with other supports that would help people to attend, such as carers or interpreters.

The Public Steering Group suggested that we recruit patients to interview by ringing them beforehand to schedule a call in advance, as opposed to asking to speak with them then and there. This new approach would have led to more in-depth conversations, as people could speak to us at a time that was convenient for them. We have used this method in another Trust project called Waiting Well, as well as offering the interviewee a choice of whether the interview is in-person (in a location chosen by the patient) or on the phone or on a video call.

“For the interviews and workshops, the team also could have utilised the Trust’s interpreting services so that we could hear from people who would prefer to speak other languages. I am pleased to hear that the team has taken forward all these ideas in other projects.” – Phayza, Public Steering Group member

Empowering community members to shape future initiatives

By involving community members from under-represented and under-served groups throughout the project, we helped to ensure the messages we are testing in our research study were appropriate and accessible.

We are still waiting on the results of the trial, which will be out later this year. We hope to see improvements in hospital appointment attendance, and if so, these interventions can be rolled out more widely at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and beyond.

For more information contact Anna Lawrence-Jones.

Waiting well

Victoria Murphy

6 August 2024

We know people are waiting a long time to receive treatment. We also know people living in less advantaged areas experience health inequalities. Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and the Helix Centre carried out a project, funded by the North West London Integrated Care Board, to understand the challenges faced by people living in less advantaged areas while waiting for orthopaedic treatment and to design tailored support initiatives that might help people to live well while waiting. To do this, we interviewed 7 patients to understand their experience of waiting for an orthopaedic procedure. Then we held a workshop with 8 patients at the Bush Theatre to design support ideas in response to the key insights from the interviews.

To ensure this project was informed by those with lived experience, we recruited two public partners to work with us throughout the project. In this blog post, our public partners Abiola Awojobi-Johnson and Mieko Wertheim tell us about their experience of being involved.

Why did you want to get involved in this project to help people live well while waiting?

Abiola: I’ve got lived experience of being on waiting lists for a very long time – literally years! I felt it was really important to be a lived experience voice for the wilderness of waiting: the physical and emotional impact of waiting when there’s no end in sight. When there’s no date set, you can feel forgotten, and I really wanted to be part of a project that would help with that.

Mieko: I’ve been on waiting lists for almost 50 years – all my married life. So I’m kind of used to it – I’ve been patiently waiting and didn’t even think about how things could be better. But I like any problem solving role, so if there is a way to improve things, that would be nice.

People sit on chairs around a table discussing in a library — Patients met at the Bush Theatre to discuss how we can help support people to live well while waiting for an orthopaedic procedure.

What did you hope this project would achieve?

Abiola: I liked that this project wasn’t about trying to jump the queue or make the wait quicker, although that would be nice. This project was about how to wait well, and that’s what attracted me to it. We all know what the NHS is dealing with, the fallout from COVID and how hard everyone is working, so what I was interested in exploring was how we can wait well. As we know, our physical and mental health are so closely related, and if people aren’t feeling great while they’re waiting because they can’t walk down to the shops or go to the park or walk their dog, that’s going to have a knock on effect on their mental health as well. So, my hope with this project was not so much about shortening the wait, but thinking about how we can still have a good quality of life while waiting.

How were you involved in the project?

Abiola: Our role was first and foremost to provide the lived experience voice. We helped come up with the interview questions, reviewed the recruitment materials, read through the interview transcripts to pick out themes that were important from a patient perspective, and played a big role at the workshop where we got involved in discussions with our peers. So really just being involved from the get go.

And can you give an example of how your involvement impacted the project?

Mieko: English is not my first language, so when I was reviewing the interview questions, there were some questions that were hard to understand. I worked with the team to make the language a lot more clear. Also, at the workshop, I was friendly and helped the participants feel more relaxed and comfortable speaking.

Abiola: For me, there were a couple of things. With the interviews, I suggested adding a question around the impact of waiting on patients’ relationships with their family and friends. As a carer, this was important to me and it was something the team said they wouldn’t have thought to include otherwise.

The other thing was my idea of a ‘window to well-being whilst waiting’. The idea was to look at the positive things one can do while waiting, so that we approach the waiting process from a different perspective. I got the idea from a project with prisoners, where people went to prison and came out with a degree three years later. I wanted to borrow that way of thinking and recognise that we can’t speed up our wait, but we can change what we do while waiting so that it aligns with our values and interests. That could be taking up a new hobby, learning a new language, or doing some volunteering – just something positive you can do that takes the emphasis off the wait. I feel really proud to have created that idea, and I’m so glad to see that it has manifested into an actual outcome that is being taken forward by the Trust.

“I think it’s really important that people get involved, and I hope researchers can create accessible and meaningful opportunities for them to do so.”
– Abiola Awojobi-Johnson, public partner

What parts of the project did you most enjoy?

Mieko: For me, it was exchanging ideas from different points of view. I thought the team did a brilliant job of recruiting a wide variety of people with different ages, genders, ethnicities, and experiences. Some people were waiting for treatment because of an accident, for others it was chronic pain. And I learned how different each of their experiences was, and their different philosophies around waiting and the variety of emotions they felt.

What worked well on the project?

Abiola: The underpinning model of co-production guided everything, and that was the most important thing. To me, co-production is about feeling authenticity. I’ve worked on a few projects, and you can always tell when there’s a true authenticity in working alongside people. If you can see the lived experience experts as a peer or a colleague, then I think that’s a true model of co-production. If you’re still categorising us into the carers, or the patients, or the ones who are waiting, then that’s not a true model because you’re still thinking about ‘us and them’.

Mieko: This was my first time being so involved with a project. I’ve taken part in workshops before, but this was very different. You have to look at things from different aspects, and at the start I felt I didn’t know the answers, so it wasn’t easy. But I think my confidence grew throughout the project and now I feel more comfortable leading discussions and sharing my lived experience, instead of taking on a more passive role. It was a very good experience.

People sit and stand around tables — Patients met at the Bush Theatre to discuss how we can help support people to live well while waiting for an orthopaedic procedure.

Would you recommend other people get involved in these kinds of projects?

Mieko: Yes, you get a chance to get inside a project and get the inside story. And you see that there are people working hard to make things better, and it gives you a reason for hope. So, I actually do recommend these opportunities to my friends when I see them now. I share with them what I’ve done and what it’s like to be involved, and I encourage them to sign up.

Abiola: Yes, I think it’s really important that people get involved in projects like this. The lived experience voice is really important and should be at the heart of projects like this, so you can be a part of making a difference. And you get something out of it as well. It might seem difficult at the beginning, but once you get going there is such a sense of fulfilment. And there is a spiritual benefit of knowing other people are having a similar health experience to you. Usually, I could walk past a person on the street or sit next to them on the bus and not know that they are waiting for treatment as well, but this project allowed me to hear other people’s stories and feel like I was part of a silent army with a growing voice. There is a real strength and solidarity in that. So I think it’s really important that people get involved, and I hope researchers can create accessible and meaningful opportunities for them to do so.

Julia Anderson Careers Event 2024: Inspiring sixth formers with career insights and opportunities to transform global health

Laura Horga

11 March 2024

In February we hosted the Julia Anderson Training Programme (JATP) Careers Event 2024 at Institute of Global Health Innovation (IGHI), a fantastic evening for sixth form students to learn more about our Julia Anderson programme and the IGHI, and get inspired for their future careers.

JATP trainees with IGHI staff — Credit: Rolando Charles

Sixth formers from different London state-funded schools travelled to The Invention Rooms, at Imperial College London’s White City Campus, to participate in the event. They got the chance to learn more about the opportunities at IGHI, hear some of our staff members’ career journeys, as well as interact with some of the fantastic workstreams we work on to improve people’s health.

About the Julia Anderson Programme and next cohort recruitment

The evening started with Sophie Pieters, IGHI Operations Officer and JATP Programme Lead, welcoming the attendees and introducing the JATP programme, including the eligibility criteria and the new trainee roles available in the summer.

The Julia Anderson Training Programme gives people with limited or no work experience the opportunity to join an impactful stream of work at IGHI, Imperial College London’s. The paid programme gives trainees the opportunity to grow their network, boost their CV and develop applicable workplace skills and knowledge.

Sophie announced the three upcoming roles for the next cohort in July, specifically Analytics and Events Trainee, Public Involvement Trainee and Educational Research Trainee (the first two are open to those with no university). On 14 March, a webinar will be held to provide people with more information on the programme, the training positions on offer and useful advice for the application. Students were highly encouraged to sign up for the webinar.

Career talks from IGHI staff and trainees

Next, some of the IGHI staff and current trainees delivered individual presentations highlighting their career journey, challenges, and other valuable insights from their experience.

“I found the job I loved although didn’t know it existed. It’s okay if you don’t know what you want to do.’’, said Eleni Daniels, Patient Safety Research Centre (PSTRC) Manager at IGHI, who has a background in biomedical sciences and worked in advertising before finding her dream job in a patient safety field.

Image: Eleni Daniels giving a presentation about her career journey. Credits: Rolando Charles

Amish Acharya, Scientific Advisor to Professor Ara Darzi at IGHI, talked about his ‘unconventional’ career path from medicine, followed by PhD in Behavioural Science, to his current role, where he is contributing to creating research projects and supporting the progress of scientific work. Amish advised:

“Exams don’t represent who you are and what you can do. It’s never too late to change your path, don’t be afraid to try different things – this can often make you more adaptable and rounded as a person.’’

One of our current Julia Anderson Trainees, Tania Domun, a graduate of Population Health and Medical Sciences with a Master’s degree in Public Health, shared her experience so far as a JATP trainee in Behavioural Science and the benefits of joining the programme:

Tania Domun sharing her experience as a current JATP trainee. Credits: Rolando Charles — Tania Domun sharing her experience as
a current JATP trainee. Credits: Rolando Charles

“JATP allows you to develop your skills and support you with the next steps in your career. It’s challenging when you don’t have a mentor or people to help you navigate your professional path. The programme does exactly that, by focusing on you as an individual. It’s a lot about your passions and not your previous work experience. This makes it a unique programme.’’

She also talked about the Imposter syndrome: ‘’I’ve realised many people, including me, deal with this syndrome – don’t let these feelings stop you from applying for the programme. This is the best time to explore possibilities and build new skills.’’

Lastly, Clarissa Gardner, Senior Design Researcher at TPXimpact and Honorary Research Fellow, spoke about her career journey as a ‘learning process’ and how she came about setting the JATP programme, after doing a MSc in Health and Design at IGHI:

‘‘Your job title doesn’t matter as much as your ability to help others and inspire positive change. I recognised the diversity of people at IGHI, so I proposed this programme to create work experiences for people.’’

Interactive activities showcasing IGHI Centres’ work

After these inspiring talks, we organised interactive activities led by each of the IGHI Centres. During these sessions, attendees had the opportunity to engage with the different workstreams at IGHI in small groups and interact with IGHI staff members.

The Hamlyn centre hosted a ‘create your own surgical robot’ activity. Sixth formers were challenged to conceptualise the design of a robot, then turn their drawings into 3D images using specialised software. Hamlyn centre representatives also explained the benefits of surgeons using surgical robots compared to traditional surgery methods, highlighting how they enhance precision during procedures. The participating team included Brandon Davies, Learning Technologist, Nazia Bharde, Project Officer, Robert Merrifield, Medical Design Associate and Salzitsa Anastasova-Ivanova, Facilities Manager.

Brandon Davies briefing students on how to design a surgical robot. Credits: Rolando Charles

At one of the Helix Centre stands led by Jodie Chan, Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement Officer, and Clare McCrudden, Policy Fellow from the Change Lab, students had the opportunity to discover how the public can influence research priorities, methodologies, and dissemination for healthcare improvement. They were encouraged to brainstorm alternative names for ‘antimicrobial resistance’ and open the ‘can of worms’ around healthcare data through an interactive activity, sparking further discussions on its benefits and risks.

Image: Clare McCrudden talking about antimicrobial resistance with sixth formers. Credits: Rolando Charles — Image: Clare McCrudden talking about antimicrobial
resistance with sixth formers. Credits: Rolando Charles

They also learned about one of the upcoming JATP roles – Public Involvement Trainee – who will help to involve local youth groups and schools in a project aimed at better understanding the mental health needs of children across the UK and identifying how services can better support them.

The second Helix Centre stand was led by Matthew Harrison, Senior Design Associate, Alex Dallman-Porter, Designer Healthcare Products, and current JATP trainee, Andrew Watt. People were invited to participate in a grip strength assessment activity, during which they were asked to squeeze a ball-shaped dynamometer (‘squegg’) in their hand to measure their frailty levels and compare with their peers. Additionally, the stand showcased a sleeping mat used for measuring heart rate and respiratory rate, along with other environmental sensors designed for individuals with dementia.

Jessica Newberry Le Vay, Climate Change and Health Policy Fellow at the Climate Cares Centre, hosted an interactive session about exploring climate emotions and imagining what future they want to see. The students were challenged to think about the following questions: ‘’How does climate change make you feel?, What stories do you hear about the future?, What would you want the future to look like?’’

People were able to discuss their responses to these questions and see what other people have put. They explored actions that can improve both mental health and the climate, building hopeful and constructive narratives around climate change.

Eleni Daniels from PSRC also had a stand on patient journey. She encouraged students to reflect on healthcare experiences of themselves, their family members, or friends, and to consider how these experiences could be further improved. People shared their thoughts and experiences, engaging in a dialogue that allowed them to open up and explore patient journeys from the GP to hospital settings.

Feedback from sixth formers

We were impressed by the amount of positive feedback we received from the sixth formers. Some examples below:

“I’ve discovered that you don’t need to know exactly what you want to do at this age. It’s more important to be open to learning and taking on new opportunities and experiences.”

“Many internships and training programmes require individuals to meet specific minimum requirements. It’s fantastic to discover that the JATP program doesn’t have such requirements, giving people the chance to gain those skills and build experience.”

Sophie Pieters, JATP Lead, and Holly Merton, JATP trainee, chatting with the sixth formers. Credits: Rolando Charles

“I found the event very engaging and fun. It made me think about my future career, the steps I want to take next and the sort of support I should be seeking. I am keen to apply for this programme!’’

On the day feedback indicated that, among our participants, 90% were inspired for their career after attending the event. According to our post-event online survey, 92% of our participants expressed their willingness to recommend JATP to a friend, while 83% of respondents indicated their intention to apply for JATP in the future.

We are looking forward to seeing people applying for the JATP programme and taking advantage of the tremendous opportunities at IGHI to advance in their careers. The event was made possible by the EDI Seed Fund and we are very grateful for their support.

Keeping OnTrack with stroke rehabilitation

Victoria Murphy

21 March 2023

The Helix Centre, part of the Institute of Global Health Innovation, is helping stroke patients to manage their recovery and increase their independence, with a wearable tool that provides support for the rehabilitation of their arm and hand.

Sana talks to the Helix Centre’s Clare McCrudden about the OnTrack technology

OnTrack Rehab is a platform that combines tracking of arm movements through a smart watch with personalised virtual coaching and dedicated clinical support. The system allows stroke patients to convert every-day activities into productive rehabilitation, and stroke therapists to monitor and help guide the patients’ progress. The development of the platform has been led by a multidisciplinary team at Helix including Gianpaolo Fusari (Project Lead) and Clare McCrudden (Engagement Lead). Gianpaolo and Clare recently ran a data collection experiment involving 20 stroke survivors to improve the software behind OnTrack.

Sana, a stroke survivor, volunteered to participate in this experiment, and met with us to describe her experience. Senior Occupational Therapist Simone Welch works in the stroke team at Charing Cross Hospital (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust), and chatted with us about the medical support for stroke survivors.

Experiencing stroke

In 2021, Sana experienced weakness in her left side following a medical procedure, and ultimately was diagnosed with a stroke. “I felt lucky in my stroke – though not lucky to have a stroke! – because stroke outcomes could be more significant.”

Sana’s physical symptoms such as some limited arm movement required ongoing management and rehabilitation as well as sensory-based issues, like those of many stroke survivors. But it can be difficult for those who’ve had a stroke to know what to expect. Sana described that support came not only from her medical team, but beyond – reading information on the internet to understand her issue, and the information provided by medical charities.

Sana is fitted with sensor technology to track her movements in order to improve the software embedded in the OnTrack system.

During a visit to hospital, an NHS physio checked that Sana could do simple everyday tasks, like brush her hair. But at home, it was more challenging to engage with the ongoing exercises.

Sana felt that the support and rehab she needed wasn’t as easy to see as most of her impairments were more hidden and not so obvious. “I am grateful that it could have been worse but if I had something more significant and visible then people would be taking me more seriously.” So when the Stroke Association sent a physiotherapist to her house for assessment and gave her exercises it was the beginning of better support.

“When it’s painful you just don’t want to do [the exercises],” Sana said. With the difficulty of engaging with exercises, plus limited face-to-face support during the pandemic and the lack of services tailored for younger people who’ve had a stroke, tailored support is needed.

As a young person surviving a stroke, Sana wanted to see support that would allow for variabilities in age and outcome, rather than a ‘one size fits all’ approach. So the invitation to participate in OnTrack’s stroke rehabilitation was appealing. Sana felt that by participating in the research, her experience was able to help others, especially when those people did not fit the ‘usual’ stroke survivor’s demographic.

One aspect of OnTrack that Sana liked was the idea of “meaningful movements”. Physiotherapy rehabilitation requires hundreds of specific or purposeful movements each day, which felt unattainable. But with the smart-watch style device, Sana describes feeling more able to achieve goals – through every-day tasks such as brushing hair and doing dishes – which count as meaningful arm movements for rehab.

“This would have been useful to me; I need to engage with something interactive,” Sana said. That’s where the app helps – measuring activity and giving motivation/feedback reinforced through different channels within the watch and app, and through the support provided by therapists.

Image of a phone screen held in hands, that says "Activity" anbd has figures of — OnTrack app interface which records movement

Sana’s message to survivors: “It does get better.” Sana recommends to engage with the exercises, and found YouTube videos and stroke support charities helpful in her recovery.

Stroke therapy

Woman stands in front of hospital entrance — Simone Welch

Simone first saw the OnTrack technology in its very early stages – when in-person service provision was really limited during the pandemic. “[It] provided an intervention that allowed [stroke survivors] to continue with the upper limb recovery”, said Simone, as well as to participate in research.

Within 24 hours of being admitted to the HyperAcute stroke unit where Simone works, the patient will be referred for a therapy assessment – be it speech, physical or occupational therapy. But the rehab certainly doesn’t end there. Where some boroughs have intensive community stroke therapy available, including at the patient’s own home, the vast majority of rehab happens when the patient is on their own. “There is a concept called self-management which is really, really important,” where patients take on responsibility for their progress and their rehabilitation.

Simone wants her patients to be able to be discharged and return home. And the app would really support them to be able to track how they’re doing with their arm and hand recovery when not in hospital. When stroke patients like Sana have an arm weakness, OnTrack Rehab can send reminders, and help them to focus on what they need to achieve. “So it’s a bit like a step counter for the arm,” explains Simone.

As any movement of the arm – actual exercises or using your arm to wash your face or to feed yourself – is beneficial, tracking with OnTrack is a really positive solution.

Keeping on track

There’s plenty of hope about what OnTrack could help with. Simone said: “I think it would help guide conversations between therapist and patient on how they can do more outside of their sessions.” Plus, it gives data that therapists can go through with their patient to support them to reach their goals.

“There’s a lot you can do to support someone’s overall quality of life and their well-being”, says Simone. The app could prompt therapists to ask: “I can see you were really active at this time of the day, but not so much here – what was happening?” This is particularly important when therapists may only see their patient for an hour, as the app allows you to know what’s happening in the other 23 hours of the day.

A smart watch on a wrist with a message that says "Well done! You have reached your daily goal" — OnTrack smart watch

For OnTrack Rehab, Clare and Gianpaolo are working to evaluate the device and its impact with more people and this year a new clinical trial will begin.

Gianpaolo said: “The data and insights that we gathered with the collaboration of Sana and other stroke survivors during Phase 1 has helped us to improve the OnTrack experience as a whole. One big change that we can’t wait to test during Phase 2 is the inclusion of smarter prompts delivered directly to the patient’s wrist, hopefully we will be able to see how these tailored messages motivate people to increase the use of their arm in more varied activities.”

“We are delighted to have members of the research study as part of a wider group of stroke survivors and carers guide us through the next phase of OnTrack Rehab, piloting it in the NHS. We expect to be able to enhance the both patient and carer’s experience, and also embed new co-designed features to keep users motivated and supported.” said Clare

Find out more about OnTrack and the user-centred designs created by the Helix Centre.

Fightin’ Thru – Mental Health is worth fighting for

Emily Medcalf

23 February 2023

young people in a boxing gym — Image credit: Jonathan Turton, Instagram @jftfilm

For many young men, opening up about mental health can feel daunting, with many feeling restricted by barriers such as stigma or fear. Those who identify as Black or minority ethnic are also more likely to experience racism, poverty and poorer educational outcomes than those who identify as White. These young people are also less likely to seek help through traditional mental health services.

To tackle this, the Institute of Global Health Innovation (IGHI) teamed up with The Mind Map, a Liverpool-based mental health organisation, and Golden Gloves Amateur Boxing Club in Toxteth, Liverpool, to form Fightin’ Thru. Fightin’ Thru is a boxing-themed campaign using innovative, creative and non-traditional mediums to raise awareness and encourage opening up about mental health in minoritised young men. We sat down with Ste Turton, a journalist for The Mind Map, and Badra Toure, a young boxer at Golden Gloves, to discuss the project.

Research conducted by Dr Lindsay Dewa, Advanced Research Fellow in Mental Health at IGHI highlighted that young men, particularly those who identify as Black or minority ethnic, were a vulnerable group when it came to mental health difficulties. Based upon these findings, Lindsay, and Ste, who had worked together previously, wanted to run an awareness project involving the young people who live in these communities, with Ste suggesting boxing as the focus. They received funding from The National Lottery Community Fund to run the new project.

30% of 16–24-year-olds experienced ‘poor mental health’ in 2020
(cCopeY, Imperial College London)

The project started in 2020, with posters placed in the Golden Gloves to recruit three young men aged 16-18 as the gym’s main collaborators. After an overwhelmingly positive application response, Badra, along with Mahbub (Mabz) Rahman, Jay Bushell and later addition Rio Clay Pierre, were selected as stand-out candidates to be paid for their work in planning and running sessions. They were joined by Head Coach Wayne Smith and the gym’s highest-ranked professional Marcel Braithwaite on brainstorming sessions. Pre-pandemic visions for the project included a fight night and interviews with high-profile boxers to break down the stigma surrounding mental health. However, when the COVID-19 pandemic and national lockdowns hit, plans were turned on their head, at a time when the need for mental health support due to the strains of the pandemic were only increasing.

COVID-19 moved the conversations from the boxing gym to Zoom. But despite the project going virtual, the regular calls offered a valuable touch point for those involved, with Badra saying that the group enabled him to connect with the other young men involved in the project at a time where in-person connections were not possible.

Throughout the pandemic, Fightin’ Thru provided free counselling for the young boxing club members, alongside online workshops and coaching sessions covering topics such as sleep, motivation, and resilience. Coaches at the Golden Gloves also attended Mental Health First Aid courses, run by The Mind Map, to learn how to spot the signs and symptoms of mental ill health and support the young people in a non-judgmental way.

The project also highlighted influential boxers who openly spoke about their experiences of mental health, demonstrating a broader shift in the perceptions of mental health and sport. In our conversation, Ste told us he had been moved by one of the sport’s bright young fighters Ryan Garcia talking openly about his personal battles. Following the biggest win of his career in 2021, Garcia suffered severe lows, which he discussed publicly in an attempt to improve the conversation between young men around mental health.

“Everything came crashing down on me. I was lost in my head; it was like being in a maze and I didn’t know where to go.”

“I now have people telling me that by opening up, I’d saved their lives. That right there is worth all the pain I went through. If a kid got out of a dark place because of my story, that’s worth more than I could ever do in the ring.”

As well as Instagram live sessions with sport psychologist Phil Steele and European Champion Zelfa Barrett, The Fightin Thru’ team produced a short film last year, featuring many of the young people involved in the project. Ste said:

“The film shows how diverse the Golden Gloves is, the great community work going on, and the great platform it can be to get the message of good mental health across to young men, from all walks of life and all communities.”

Badra hopes that the project has given people who are struggling a place to go. Badra said:

“I’ve never really heard about people discussing [mental health] in my groups. Projects like Fightin’ Thru help break down this stigma because it’s a space where you can talk to others, and where people will listen and give you advice.”

Ste and Badra hope the project has demonstrated how important boxing and community centres are to keep young people occupied, by giving them a place, a platform, and discipline. Lindsay hopes this is the start of using different and creative medias to increase awareness of the importance of good mental health in minoritised groups.

You can follow the project on Instagram @Fightinthru, which celebrates members of their community, teaching the young boxers that good mental health is as important as their physical fitness, and encouraging them to seek help when needed.

A young person’s experience of being involved in the Networked Data Lab

Anna Lawrence-Jones

2 February 2023

Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE)

The Institute of Global Health Innovation partners with Imperial College Health Partners (ICHP) and Imperial College London to lead the North West London Networked Data Lab (NDL).

The Networked Data Lab (NDL), funded by The Health Foundation, is a community of data professionals looking to solve the UK’s most pressing health care challenges since COVID-19. The North West London NDL is one of five NDLs around the UK that carries out data analysis on various topics based on local priorities, which were determined through community engagement and by the Health Foundation. Health care data is often fragmented, making reliable analysis difficult, but in North West London we have access to a depersonalised linked data set, via Discover-NOW, covering a diverse population of over 2.5 million. The NDL analysed how young people’s mental health and access to care was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Arif, one of the 20 young people who attended the first public involvement workshop in May 2021, tells us about his experience of being involved and why he then ended up joining the project’s Young Person’s Advisory Group.

This blog was originally posted online by Imperial College Health Partners.

I saw an advert for the workshop in communications from a youth charity I’m part of. I thought it sounded like an interesting workshop because it was about coming up with priorities for research around young people’s mental health, which could then improve care. I wanted to represent my views as a young person with experience of mental health difficulties and to try to make a difference for other young people going through something similar.

“I think it’s so important to involve young people in projects like this – we should have a say in how services, which support us, run.” – Arif

More young people need mental health support than ever before, and services are struggling with increased demand – something needs to change. Who better to suggest changes than the people who have experienced the services and have ideas about what could make them better. We bring our own experiences and skills that are different to researchers and healthcare professionals. We can help unlock answers to issues that professionals might not have thought about.

After the workshop, we were asked if we wanted to apply to be part of the Young Person’s Advisory Group, to oversee the project from a young person perspective, which I was pleased to join. My role was to advocate the views of young people in the work and outputs and to make sense of the data. For example, we were presented the initial findings from the analysis of the data and then suggested areas that we thought would be interesting to explore further. The data analysts presented the different findings in a number of graphs and talked us through the significance of each. One of the findings was around how young women in North West London have been accessing more mental health services since COVID-19 and receiving more diagnosis and treatment than young men. However, when we discussed this in the group, we thought that it didn’t necessarily mean young men were not experiencing as many mental health difficulties as young women, but maybe young men were less likely to seek help. Having us look at the results, helped the analysts see that the results might not be showing the whole picture.

I also reviewed The Health Foundation’s national policy paper to make sure that the results were clear. The paper recommends that three key areas need urgent investigation, to help ensure children and young people universally get the care they need.

These are, understanding:

The rapid increases in mental health prescribing and support provided by GPs
The prevalence of mental health problems among adolescent girls and young women
The stark socioeconomic inequalities across the UK

One key thing that stood out to me was the increase in prescribing medication to treat young people, that didn’t match an increase in other kinds of treatment. I think we need to understand why this is happening. To me, this suggests there are limited options for GPs to progress mental health support in other ways.

“Being part of this project, I’ve learned that implementing effective improvements is a long process and it cannot happen instantly.” – Arif

It takes time and resource. But I can’t wait to see the impact the results of the NDL will have on services and young people. I think the YPAG could help with ensuring the results are implemented, by meeting with some of the leaders, to help ensure they act on change. Having a young person at the table helps to add a face to the people who have been experiencing worsened mental health since COVID-19 and difficulty accessing services. We could share the results with our networks and empower young people to advocate to decision-makers about what needs to change, to urgently tackle this mental health crisis.

I would definitely recommend that young people get involved in projects like this. Not only can you gain valuable professional experience, but you can get involved in improving problems that might otherwise be overlooked. The amount of time we had to dedicate was manageable around my work commitments. And, I liked that there were Mental Health First Aiders as part of the team, in case any of us wanted to have a debrief after a meeting.

In terms of what could have been done differently around our involvement; I think it would have been useful to have more consistent communication and a stable point of contact. There were a lot of changes in staff, so we had three different Public Involvement Leads as our main point of contact, which got a bit confusing. Now that I am involved in a few projects, I think it would be really useful to be sent a brief summary of what has happened so far, to keep me up to speed and to keep the project front of mind.

If other researchers are looking to involve young people in their work, I would suggest to:

Have a clear idea of the time commitment that the young people would need to dedicate to the project and how often they would meet
Send clear and concise information with enough notice before a meeting
Involve people in the late afternoons or evening after work e.g. 4.30-7pm or in lunch breaks
Potentially, set up a WhatsApp group that could be useful to send reminders and get the group to work well as a team

If you are aged 16-25 and are looking to get involved in a project like Arif, sign up to Imperial College London’s Young Person’s Advisory Network.

Reducing isolation – using co-creation to get people living with dementia online

Alice Gregory

31 October 2022

Our Helix Centre works to translate research into products that improve health outcomes. In this blog Alice Gregory, Designer at the Helix Centre, describes the creation of a ‘Digital Befriending Kit’ and toolkit as part of the Digital Inclusion Innovation Programme run by the Greater London Authority and the London Office for Technology and Innovation (LOTI). This blog was originally posted online by LOTI.

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