Cathryn Smith Lecturer, school of healthcare sciences, and PhD student, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales
Jessica Baillie Adult lecturer, Healthcare Science, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales
Paul Gill Deputy head of department, Department of Nursing, Midwifery and Health, Faculty of Life Science, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Why you should read this article:

• To understand the importance of using patient and public involvement (PPI) in doctoral and dementia research

• To become aware of the opportunities and challenges associated with including patients with dementia in PPI advisory groups

• To gain insight into the practicalities of establishing PPI

Background There is increasing recognition of the need to include patients and the public in the research process. There is extensive literature about patient and public involvement (PPI) in research, but fewer articles report on PPI in doctoral research.

Aim To reflect on establishing an advisory group for a doctoral study, exploring the opportunities and challenges associated with including patients with dementia in the research process.

Discussion The authors discuss the practicalities of establishing an advisory group, the challenges of being a novice researcher, long-term commitment to PPI, the overall approach to PPI and ethical considerations.

Conclusion Establishing an advisory group for a doctoral study can facilitate mutual learning and enhance the study’s quality.

Implications for practice Achieving high-quality PPI in health and social care research can ultimately improve its quality and relevance. An important aspect of the doctoral journey is developing knowledge and skills to facilitate PPI as part of a researcher’s apprenticeship.

Nurse Researcher. 32, 2, 39-45. doi: 10.7748/nr.2024.e1919

Peer review

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

Conflict of interest

None declared

Smith C, Baillie J, Gill P (2024) Importance of patient and public involvement in doctoral research involving people living with dementia. Nurse Researcher. doi: 10.7748/nr.2024.e1919

Correspondence

smithcl4@cardiff.ac.uk

Published online: 27 March 2024

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