Last month, Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust (OHFT) research team ran a coffee morning at the Warneford Hospital. The aim of the event was to thank and recognise people who have taken part in research previously, as well as share current research opportunities with participants and members of the public.
The event was organised collaboratively by the NIHR Oxford Health Clinical Research Facility (CRF), Oxford Health Research and Development (R&D), NIHR Oxford Health Biomedical Research Centre (OH BRC), and NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) Thames Valley and South Midlands. The Oxford Health Patient Experience and Involvement (PEI) team also joined the event to share involvement opportunities.
Around 20 members of the public came to the coffee morning, along with staff members from local clinical and research teams. Current research volunteers and Research Champions shared their experiences of research involvement, and several attendees signed up to receive information about research opportunities.
There were eleven signups for Patient and Public Involvement opportunities across the teams. Other attendees expressed interest in participating in specific research studies, and joining registries such as Join Dementia Research and Be Part of Research. Staff attendees reported that they appreciated the opportunity to network and discuss collaborative service development initiatives.
Everyone who completed the feedback form stated that they had learnt more about research, that they were made to feel valued and enjoyed meeting research staff. They also provided helpful suggestions to consider for future events. Staff attendees appreciated the collaborative approach.
A Patient Research Champion who attended, said: “The coffee and cake morning gave me an opportunity to meet, in an informal way, researchers and communicators who are all keen to promote and operate medical research which prioritises patient need.”
Maureen Cundell, a nurse at Oxford Health’s Memory Clinic, said: “I enjoyed meeting colleagues and sharing ideas for service development. I would encourage more colleagues to attend.”
Planning for the next coffee morning has begun. If you would like to hear more, please email Deborah.Moll@oxfordhealth.nhs.uk
