Overview
The Chief Scientist Office (CSO) has a group of volunteers, comprised of members of the public, who form CSO’s Public Engagement Group (PEG). The group is currently made up of fifteen volunteers who come from a variety of backgrounds but each with a keen interest in the National Health Service and Health Research in Scotland. The group currently meets virtually, three to four times per year for group information events, in addition to participating in specifically assigned activities.
How Does the PEG Help CSO?
The main remit of the PEG is to provide a lay perspective on the activities of CSO, ensuring public views are accounted for throughout relevant policy and funding decisions. CSO expect all researchers to incorporate Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) into their work and this is a major feature of all grant and fellowship funding applications. Therefore, PPI activities should be costed and funded appropriately for applications being submitted to CSO to ensure the appropriate support is provided. PEG members play a key role in helping evaluate this by sitting on a number of CSO Committees and Panels which assess a vast range of research topics including cancer, diabetes, stroke, cardiovascular and mental health to name a few.
Response Mode Funding Committees
Members are normally appointed by the Chief Scientist to one of the two main CSO Response Mode Committees. These committees accept curiosity-led research ideas from Scottish universities and health boards and are flexible, with no specifications on which disease or condition the research must focus on. Members attend these meetings to support the assessment process by providing a public perspective on the lay summary and PPI aspects of funding applications. This ensures that the outcomes of discussions are transparent and fair.
Fellowship Panels
PEG members also have the opportunity to sit on a number of fellowship panels where they are involved in the shortlisting of applications and interviewing candidates. During the interview process, PEG members are invited to question candidates on the lay summary or PPI activities from their applications, whilst having the opportunity to participate in voting which supports final funding selections.
Adults with Incapacity Working Group
Following on from a public consultation in 2018 on amending the Scottish Adults with Incapacity legislation, and in anticipation of a suitable Bill to carry the legislation before Parliament, this working group meets monthly and is supporting CSO to consider how best to refresh the legislation so that Adults with Incapacity have better access to health research. PEG engagement is crucial to complement the group’s health research expertise and ensure that the range of issues around the rights and dignity of potentially vulnerable research participants are considered.
Final Report Reviewing
Individuals are also asked to partake in reviewing end of project reports to help understand if they are understandable for the general public. Comments received from PEG members are collated and fed back to researchers for them to make necessary amendments to ensure information can be understood by the lay person. Over the last year, the group have reviewed approximately fifty final reports and examples of final versions can be viewed on our funded research pages.
Other Activities
Our PEG members have also been involved in some ad-hoc activities, including the Precision Medicine Alliance Scotland Funding Call and COVID-19 Funding Calls.
Reflections from Current PEG Members
John provides insight into his experience of the PEG and serving as a lay member on the Health Improvement, Protection and Services Research Committee:
“Contributing to PEG has enabled me to play a part in improving the healthcare of people in Scotland and continue my life-long learning. Other Group members and CSO Officers encourage active participation and this enables me to ask questions, challenge the way things are done and put forward my own suggestions for continuous improvement
As a member of the Health Improvement, Protection and Services Research Committee, I provide a lay perspective on grant applications for improving healthcare in Scotland. The professionals and academics involved in the Committee value different perspectives, and this gives me the confidence to contribute to discussions on the research projects.
My experience has been stimulating and enjoyable. I have expanded my knowledge of healthcare research and strategy in Scotland and maintained and improved my own skills and abilities. All of this has helped me keep my mind sharp during my retirement.”
Katharine shares some thoughts about the PEG and recent experience of contributing to the Early Postdoctoral Fellowship Scheme:
“I joined the PEG in January 2022 and have really enjoyed the variety and nature of the work so far. As someone interested in science but not working in the healthcare field, it is fascinating to find out about the diversity of research taking place in Scotland – in particular, the amount of work undertaken during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure we increase our understanding and response to that and similar diseases in the future.
As members we are asked to review summaries of projects funded by the CSO to make sure they can be understood by non-specialists, and have been invited to meetings to hear about ongoing research and its outcomes. I’ve also been part of a panel shortlisting applications for early career postdoctoral research fellowships, commenting on the applications from a lay perspective, and the inclusion of the public and patients in the proposals. It is a really well run group and fits flexibly into my other commitments. It is a real privilege to be a member, and feels like I can have a small part in contributing to the important health research the CSO is involved in.”
Volunteers
Time Commitment:
3-6 days annually, plus time to read meeting papers
Requirements:
- Interest in Health Research
- Ability to correspond with CSO by e-mail
- Access to Microsoft Teams for attending virtual meetings
- Occasional travel to St Andrews House, Edinburgh for meetings
Additional Information
The PEG Terms of Reference and Information Pack provide useful background information and details of members’ responsibilities.
Expressions of Interest
Expressions of interest, not exceeding one A4 page, explaining why you are interested in becoming a member of the group and details of any relevant experience you might have should be directed to the CSO Fellowship mailbox.
Alternatively, for further information, please contact the CSO Fellowship mailbox.