What Matters to Whom: Patient and Public Involvement in Research

We outline a call to action for reproductive health researchers to include patient and public involvement (PPI) in research. PPI prioritizes the patient perspective from study design through dissemination of results which centers the people research intends to serve. PPI highlights the patient as an expert in their own condition. PPI that includes groups harmed by health care disparities can draw attention to these harms and generate novel approaches to address them. Numerous frameworks exist for the use of PPI in research. Because obstetrics and gynecology conditions can be particularly sensitive, PPI is crucial in our field.

Automated summary

This article calls for reproductive health researchers to include patient and public involvement (PPI) in their research. PPI prioritizes the patient perspective throughout the research process, from study design to result dissemination, and focuses on the people the research aims to serve. PPI, especially when including populations affected by healthcare disparities, can draw attention to these disparities and generate innovative approaches to address them. Various frameworks exist for incorporating PPI into research, and it is particularly crucial in the field of obstetrics and gynecology due to the sensitive nature of the conditions.