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Obesity Institute

OBESITY VOICES

Patient and Public Involvement & Engagement (PPIE) Hub

Two plus-size women enjoying a drink and laughing

Working with people from across broad and diverse populations living with, or at risk of obesity, to coproduce our work and ensure we make a real and tangible difference to improving lives.

Working together

What is Obesity voices?

Obesity Voices is a national network of patients and members of public with a lived experience of obesity from across broad and diverse populations, who work with the Obesity Institute and our partners to help improve the lives of people living with or at risk of obesity.

Our members ensure everything the Obesity Institute does is driven by the voice of lived experience and supports other organisations to do this too.

No experience or skills required - anyone can join us - all you need is to share our passion to make a positive difference to people living with or at risk of obesity.

Our work is centred around the six values and principles of public involvement.

  1. Respect

    Researchers, research organisations and the public respect one another’s roles and perspectives.

  2. Support

    Researchers, research organisations and the public have access to practical and organisational support to involve and be involved.

  3. Transparency

    Researchers, research organisations and the public are clear and open about the aims and scope of involvement in the research.

  4. Fairness of opportunity

    Researchers and research organisations ensure that public involvement in research is open to individuals and communities without discrimination.

  5. Responsiveness

    Researchers and research organisations actively respond to the input of public members involved in research.

  6. Accountability

    Researchers, research organisations and the public are accountable for their involvement in research and to people affected by the research.

What do Obesity Voices members do?

  • They work with us and our trusted partners to ensure the work we do meets the needs of the public and patients we serve
  • They ensure our work is acceptable, useful and usable
  • They help us to develop a new generation of compassionate person-centred professionals
  • They ensure our work is inclusive by providing an opportunity to listen to every voice, not just those who are most often heard

What are the benefits of becoming an Obesity Voices member?

  • You will have the opportunity to meet new people and contribute to work that improves the lives of people living with or at risk of obesity
  • You will be paid for your time and your out of pocket expenses
  • You will receive support and training
  • You will be provided with many different opportunities to work with the Obesity Institute and our trusted partners, on topics and projects that interest you
  • You can receive a newsletter twice a year telling you about the work we are doing
  • There is no obligation – we will tell you about different opportunities, what they involve and the time they should take - you then decide whether or not you would like to get involved

The Obesity Voices promise

  • Every member is treated with respect and fairness
  • We will always offer to pay members for their time and expenses
  • We will provide appropriate training and support whenever needed
  • We will always use person first language and work to eliminate weight stigma and bias
  • We will be clear, open, honest and accountable for everything we do
  • Any personal information you share with us will always be held in the strictest confidence and never shared with anyone else
  • We are always happy to answer any questions

Members' commitment

In order to provide active and positive engagement between researchers and our members, the Obesity Institute Steering Committee have agreed a code of conduct when reviewing, advising and consulting with researchers. This sets out our overarching values for the Obesity Institute and the standards of behaviours expected by our members when consulting on research.

If you would like to join Obesity Voices please take a moment to review and familiarise yourself with our code of conduct for all our members included below.

Obesity Voices Code of Conduct

The Code of Conduct is to be signed by volunteers participating in activities such as focus groups or reviewing confidential information such as grant applications. The purpose is to:

  • Give assurance to members
  • Give credibility to the group and ensure a professional understanding of the confidential nature of the material to be discussed and reviewed
  • Give assurance to researchers

Members agree to work in partnership with researchers to identify, design, prioritise, conduct and disseminate patient focused research that is relevant, ethical and will make a difference to patient care.

  1. Inclusion, equality and diversity

    We are strongly committed to the promotion of equality and diversity for members and staff. Members’ behaviour and attitudes must be consistent with the aims and values of the Obesity Institute; to support inclusion, diversity and equity for all.

  2. Respect

    Members must treat each other, researchers and others they come into contact with when volunteering in their role with respect and courtesy at all times. Members must respect different opinions and experiences - listening to and recognising the value of others’ contributions to discussions. We ask that feedback is constructive and conducive to improving the quality of our research.

  3. Confidentiality

    Members must respect the status of confidential issues they read and discuss. They are bound to maintain the status of this material and any information shared by researchers or other members. Members should abide by the following confidentiality statement at all times:

    Unless stated otherwise, all pre-award materials – including funding bids and research proposals are confidential and should not be discussed outside the confines of the Obesity Voices research groups. Members will be notified when such materials are no longer confidential, at which point they may be discussed freely outside of the research group. When members are involved in post-award activity – i.e., active, ongoing research – they will be informed at the start of their involvement whether anything is confidential and when it ceases to be so. The nature of the Obesity Voices research groups mean that personal stories and experiences may be shared at group meetings. Members should not share these stories outside of the group in a way that includes any identifiable information.

  4. Integrity and transparency

    Members are required to use their knowledge, expertise, and experience to give the best advice they can. Members should act in an individual capacity and not as a representative of any group, organisation or individual. Members must not accept gifts or hospitality which are aimed at compromising their neutrality.

  5. Commitment

    Members should prepare for meetings to ensure they add value to any Obesity Voices activities. We will send you the necessary information at least two weeks prior to any meetings. Members should inform the Obesity Voices administrator if they are unable to attend.

  6. Conflicts of interest

    Members should identify and promptly declare any actual, potential or perceived conflicts affecting them. If you hear something within a focus group which you feel would be a conflict of interest for you, please make the researcher aware. A conflict of interest could be working for or being involved in activities, organisations or funders related to the research, or being involved as a participant in a research trial directly related to the research you are discussing. If you are unsure, please raise this with the Obesity Voices administrator or the researcher.

  7. Openness and accountability

    Members must be open, responsive and accountable to each other, members of staff and researchers.

Steering committee

Our Steering Committee has a broad and diverse membership, bringing a wealth of knowledge, expertise, and experience to guide our work involving patients and members of the public. Our committee membership includes:

Make a PPIE Request for your activities

Read our Professional's PPIE Request guide for information, guidance and checklists regarding the Obesity Voices Hub PPIE recruitment process. Please be aware that requests (external to LBU) may be subject to a standard fee of £40; further details can be found in the guide. Submit your request using the PPIE Request form.
Professional’s PPIE Request Guide Professional’s PPIE Request Form

What do Obesity Voices members do?

  • They work with us and our trusted partners to ensure the work we do meets the needs of the public and patients we serve
  • They ensure our work is acceptable, useful and usable
  • They help us to develop a new generation of compassionate person-centred professionals
  • They ensure our work is inclusive by providing an opportunity to listen to every voice, not just those who are most often heard

what are the benefits of obesity voices?

  • The Obesity Voices Hub provides an effective group of potential PPIE Representatives
  • We develop, mentor and support our PPIE members
  • Good examples of PPIE are collected and shared to support our collaborators and we provide informal advice and guidance
  • We offer training opportunities for researchers and our PPIE Members
  • We have developed a vibrant community and our members are dynamic and highly responsive to opportunities

Benefits of patient and public involvement and engagement (PPIE)

There are many reasons why we should involve patients and the public in all our work. Here are some benefits:

  • Gain different viewpoints, which can help to develop new solutions and improve the design, delivery and impact of our work
  • Ensure our research addresses questions that matter to patients and the public
  • Empower patients and public members living with or at risk of obesity
  • Ensure the work we do is fair, reasonable and realistic to everyone involved
  • Build a sense of community through shared experience and challenges, and to ensure we listen and respond to every voice across our broad and diverse communities
  • Help us communicate in plain English, to ensure that what we do and what we find is clear to everyone
  • Help train our students in becoming compassionate person-centred professionals
  • PPIE members can help share research findings, to ensure they reach and are
  • Understood by the public and patients who can benefit from them

Obesity Voices Professional Code of Conduct

The Code of Conduct is to be signed by volunteers participating in activities such as focus groups or reviewing confidential information such as grant applications. The purpose is to:

  • Give assurance to members
  • Give credibility to the group and ensure a professional understanding of the confidential nature of the material to be discussed and reviewed
  • Give assurance to researchers

The professionals requesting to work with our PPIE hub agree to work in partnership with Obesity Voice members to identify, design, prioritise, conduct and disseminate patient focused research that is relevant, ethical and will make a difference to patient care.

As an Obesity Institute partner and colleague, we ask you to ensure you follow our code of conduct:

  1. Members are treated as partners of research.

  2. PPIE activities with members must be research that is carried out WITH or BY members and not TAKING PART in research that is about or for them.

  3. Activities and opportunities and the level of contribution are always TAILORED to each member’s interest and availability.

  4. Members to be reimbursed adequately and timely on terms no less generous than those set out in the PPIE national guidelines.

  5. Appropriately acknowledge member contribution.

  6. Demonstrate honesty, care, compassion, collaboration, equality and inclusion.

  7. Use person first language in all communications and support Obesity Institute to eliminate weight stigma and bias.

  8. Feed results of activity back to members.

  9. All Member Personal Information will be held in the strictest confidence and in accordance with all Data Privacy Laws.

  10. Have in place and implement appropriate procedures to deal with complaints from members, and in any event permit members to withdraw from their projects should they no longer wish to participate.

Share your voice

Join obesity voices

If you are interested in working with the Obesity Voices Hub please provide some details via our Expression of Interest Form. We will send you information about all opportunities that meet your areas of interest, as and when they arrive, and a newsletter twice a year to keep you posted with all our activity.

Join now via form Welcome Pack guide
Plus-size man with arms folded

Contact Ken Clare

PPIE Lead, Obesity Institute

Contact Suneet Morley

Institute Coordinator, Carnegie School of Sport