Table 8 Public involvement in securing research funds

Need for funds

∙ Public involvement adds to the cost of the research enterprise – to provide the information, training and infrastructure that publics and researchers require to enable involvement and sustain partnerships, as well as to permit research projects and programmes of research to be conducted at the pace and in the manner that supports meaningful public involvement [46, 57, 58]

∙ Added costs may not be anticipated or valued [4, 5], especially to support deep inclusion and equity [60]

Source of funds

∙ Governments should allocate sufficient funds [60]

∙ Research organisations (universities, public or private funding agencies) should raise funds or collaborate to ensure adequate funds [46]

∙ NGOs can be sources of funds for research, provide in-kind support or identify other funding sources [38]

Funding policy

∙ Funding structure (e.g. more competitive, less stable) may limit capacity for developing and sustaining partnerships with publics [55]

∙ Funding conflicts of interest – some ways of funding public involvement in health research at particular risk of conflicts of interest, as when a health service funds research that involves service users [55]