Community Engagement for Health Impact

There is increasing global recognition that research and interventions seeking to change the social determinants of health are most impactful when communities are actively engaged in the process. Therefore, many health researchers are looking towards participatory approaches to the co-production of knowledge and health practitioners are increasingly aiming to co-design health interventions with communities, patients or service end-users. This subject will give students an understanding of, and experience in, the principles, processes and some of the methods used in participatory health research. It will illustrate the ways these principles, processes and methods can be applied to the co-design of health interventions, to support patient-public involvement in health, and to user led health research. This subject will be of interest to students wanting to build the necessary skills to support communities to deepen their understanding of their own circumstances, to engage communities in taking action to help resolve conditions undermining health, and to ensure that community engagement maximises positive health impacts. As part of this subject, students will be expected to participate in (a) practical exercises designed to enhance skills and techniques; and (b) workshopping, analysis and reflection of data collected during an in-class research project.