You have been sent this information about participant involvement because you participate in one of the following studies: OPTIC (Oxford), COCO (Birmingham), AVIS (Liverpool),SIREN-PITCH (Newcastle/Sheffield/Liverpool). These studies form the PITCH consortium.
What is a Participant Involvement Panel (PIP)?
A PIP is an active partnership between study participants with the researchers that influences and shapes the research and study delivery.
Purpose of the panel
The panel will support the PITCH (Protective Immunity from T Cells in Healthcare workers) study to ensure we are conducting research that is relevant, suitable and valuable. We are keen to ensure participant feedback is heard and considered.
The aims of the PIP will be to advise and guide PITCH researchers and study management team through assessing if the project is on track to answer the research questions, providing open, honest feedback and reflections on the research priorities as well as perspectives and thoughts on how the study is delivered and the wider implications of the research to the public.
Membership
We're looking for six participants to join the panel.
- Membership is based on the PITCH participant criteria. PIP members must be an active participant at a PITCH site (Birmingham, Liverpool, Newcastle, Oxford, Sheffield) who is continuing to undergo study testing and sample taking.
- Membership will begin with the first meeting at 14:00 - 16:00 on Tuesday 7 November 2023.
- Members must have access to the internet and an accessible device to attend virtual meetings via Zoom and an email address for communications.
Responsibilities
Panel members will:
- Attend meetings and read any documents sent in advance.
- Play an active, constructive and co-operative role in meetings.
- Respond with comments on documents by the requested dates.
- Remain inclusive of the views of all study participants.
Ways of working
The panel will meet six times from November 2023 to December 2024 and dates will be scheduled roughly every two months. Meetings will be held virtually on Zoom and will not exceed 2 hours. Members may be contacted between meetings via email for advice/input should the need arise.
The British Society for Immunology will support panel members in their role and provide secretariat for the panel, organising and chairing meetings, circulating papers and sharing information and resources through email. PIP members will follow the BSI code of conduct during their time on the panel and all involved in the panel will maintain confidentiality of the PITCH study within the project team.
Recognition
Panel members will be remunerated in recognition for their work and service. The honorarium offered will be £50 per meeting.
Interested?
If you're interested and available to attend the first meeting, you can express interest in joining the PIP by completing a short Microsoft Forms with your details. You have until Friday 29 September 2023 to apply.
Next steps will be a brief informal video call with a member of the BSI team to hear more about what’s involved and understand your experiences and motivations for joining the panel. MS Teams calls will be scheduled for the week beginning 2 October 2023. Depending on number of applicants, we may not be able to get back to everyone individually.
For any questions, please contact Erika Aquino, BSI Public Engagement Manager at e.aquino@immunology.org