Reflections on public involvement: learning from a personalised balance training intervention for individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

This paper offers a critical reflection of public involvement within a large programme of work (B-PuRe) which aims to co-create balance training to reduce falls risk in people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Specifically, the focus will be on phase one which involved gathering and evaluating evidence to feed into intervention co-design and evaluation. Drawing on project information and academic frameworks for public involvement, this paper examines how the group was formed, engagement sustained and specific approaches employed when designing and disseminating the research. Insights gained highlight the projects’ success in fostering meaningful relationships, enhancing research relevance, and addressing ethical issues in public involvement work. This paper looks closely at how members of the public were involved in a large research project (B-PuRe) that aims to create balance-training exercises to help prevent falls in people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). It focuses on the first phase of the project, where the team gathered and reviewed information to help shape the design and test the balance-training programme. Using project documents and well-known guidelines on involving the public in research, the paper describes how the public involvement group was brought together, how their participation was supported over time, and the ways they helped shape and share the research. The paper highlights what the team learned, particularly how involving the public helped build strong relationships, made the research more relevant to people’s real needs, and helped the team handle ethical issues that come with public involvement. These reflections add to what we know about good practice in involving patients and the public in research on long-term conditions. They offer guidance for developing future interventions and for shaping upcoming research in respiratory health. These reflections contribute to best practice in patient and public involvement and engagement for chronic conditions, informing intervention development and the focus of future research in respiratory health.