Working together to undertake research

Reflections of the project co-ordinator I came to this project with some experience of undertaking a participatory research study (Northway 1998). I was thus committed to the development of strategies that would promote the participation of people who use health and social care services in all stages of the research process. However, my previous study had, in comparison, been a much smaller scale project. The thought of taking on the management of this study was a little daunting in that it was a study commissioned by service users themselves. Lines and levels of accountability thus needed to be clearly established and maintained. In addition, it was a study that would involve data collection in a variety of settings, and in which student nurses would be involved as data collectors. Therefore, I had accountability not only as a researcher but also as a nurse and as a lecturer. Nonetheless, not being one to be put off by a challenge, it was also an exciting opportunity for me to try to put into practice my commitment to user involvement in research.