Cochrane marks the second anniversary of the commitment to Public Involvement in Health and Social Care Research, a pledge launched in March 2022. This commitment underscores Cochrane's ongoing efforts to enhance its practice of public involvement in health and social care research.
Cochrane is one of twenty-one organizations signed up to the pledge, including the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and the Health Research Authority (HRA).
Richard Morley, Cochrane's Consumer Engagement Officer, reflects on this initiative: “Making a public commitment to involving the users of our evidence sets out our serious intent to build on our past achievements and deepen and broaden our work.”
A notable achievement is the establishment of the Co-Production Methods Group, launched in October 2023. Aligned with the ‘Putting People First’ commitment, this group will spearhead methods research, share resources for best practice, and supports learning and dissemination activities to help systematic review authors engage with and respond to the needs of consumers. 
To help people make sense of health evidence, Cochrane provides a free Evidence Essentials learning module. This free online resource offers an introduction to health evidence and how to use it to make informed health choices. The module has been co-produced by healthcare consumers, researchers and Cochrane's specialists, with contributions from a range of experts in their fields.
The Learning Live series builds on this, offering free webinars aimed at a range of audiences. Some webinars are aimed at Cochrane review authors, to help them make their research more widely accessible and understood. Others are aimed at helping people to engage with Cochrane research, such as webinars for teachers on using Cochrane Crowd in school projects.
Looking ahead, Cochrane has a framework for consumer engagement and involvement that runs until 2027. This comprehensive approach revolves around five key elements. It emphasizes proactive engagement strategies, including communication, evidence dissemination, recruitment, and learning. Cochrane aims to elevate co-production by intensifying consumer involvement in the evidence production process, aligning reviews with user needs, and supporting consumer governance.
Prioritizing accessibility, the framework strives to enhance health literacy among healthcare consumers while making Cochrane's evidence more easily accessible. Strategic partnerships, particularly with patient groups, aim to enhance engagement, co-production, advocacy, and health literacy activities.
Finally, the framework incorporates an observatory to ensure evidence-based practices, monitor, and evaluate the impact of Cochrane's ongoing efforts in engagement and involvement.
- Learn more about Cochrane’s commitment to healthcare consumers
- Join Cochrane’s work as a patient, carer, or member of the public
- Email the Cochrane Consumers Network at consumers@cochrane.org