On Thursday 10th July, the Faculty is hosting its annual Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) Celebration Event. For this event we have a great line up of speakers and activities – keep reading to find out more.  

Theme: Moving Forwards: Inclusivity and Diversity in PPIE 

This year’s theme ‘Moving Forwards: Inclusivity and Diversity in PPIE’ will explore the importance of and celebrate diversity and inclusion in our PPIE. 

We will also recognise the inspirational and outstanding commitment to PPIE that has made a positive difference through the Faculty’s ‘Outstanding Contribution to PPIE’ awards. Please join us to celebrate with our winners who will be announced live at the event.   

Co-hosts:   

Kay Gallacher, public contributor and Co-chair of the Faculty’s PPIE Forum  

Kay has been a public contributor at the University for several years and has been involved with many research projects. Currently she is a co-researcher on an open research fellowship project, testing a new Faculty PPIE Quality Mark which aims to improve the quality of PPIE in research projects and create an inclusive and accessible research culture.   

Having a marketing and communications background, Kay likes to apply her skills to ensure that research findings are written in plain English and are accessible to the general public. One of her personal objectives is to get more members of the public involved in research, particularly those from under-represented communities.   

Dr Jo Pennock, Social Responsibility Director and Senior Lecturer in Immunology 

Jo is a Senior Lecturer in the Lydia Becker Institute of Immunology and Inflammation and Social Responsibility (SR Director for the School of Biological Sciences). Jo is a member of the Faculty’s PPIE Forum who has involved Public Contributors in teaching activities for several years, helping students to understand the critical importance of engaging patients. 

 

 

Speakers:   

Anam Bhutta, Public Involvement Co-Researcher 

Anam has worked as a Public Involvement Co-Researcher at The University of Manchester, working within the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration for Greater Manchester (ARC-GM), under their Mental Health Theme. She is a true involvement advocate, having been involved in several research projects that aim to improve the health of the population and the quality/sustainability of the Health & Social Care they receive. Last year, Anam was highly commended in the newcomer staff category and is nominated again this year. 

Sadia Mir, Independent Health and Racial Equity Adviser 

Since 2019, Sadia has worked with various institutes to help create work, initiatives and research that is both ethical and equitable. She uses her lived experience and the experiences of the communities around her to create meaningful change and a lasting impact. Sadia has held several research-support roles within the wider NIHR circle, from adviser, reviewer, co-applicant, stakeholder and admin. Sadia is also part of a group advocating for better rights at work for women with the Young Women’s Trust. 

Nadine Mirza, Research Associate with the NIHR ARC-GM and PhD Candidate with the Centre for Primary Care and Health Services Research 

Nadine has a background in psychology and has primarily worked in research on British ethnic minorities’ access to and experiences of dementia diagnostic services over the last 9 years. She is particularly interested in approaches to the cross-cultural adaptation of neuropsychological assessments, and the inclusion of ethnic minorities in research. Nadine is passionate about science communication, particularly in spoken and written formats. She has undertaken participatory action in her dementia research and has co-produced a podcast with young people on research methods and practices. 

Ashgan Mahyoub, Research Assistant 

Ashgan is a Research Assistant at the University of Manchester with a background in Health Psychology. She has also been a public contributor for many years, actively involved in a wide range of projects in both contributor and co-researcher roles to support more inclusive and meaningful research. She has shared her work and perspectives at multiple conferences, helping to champion the involvement of young people and under-represented voices in research. 

 

 

Dr Binish Khatoon, Qualitative methodologist and Co-lead for the South Asian Women in Higher Education Network 

Binish is a qualitative methodologist at the University with over 10 years of experience in health research. Her projects have been exploratory qualitative studies trying to explore the lived experiences of participant. For example, understanding the emotional climate in maternity departments, and exploring the work-related engagement and wellbeing in ambulance service staff.   

A key part of her identity as a researcher has been to create culturally tailored spaces and trust for participants to feel safe, confident and empowered to share their honest thoughts and experiences. She used creative arts such as narrative therapy (Tree of Life) and engaged with participants in different ways, tailored to the community needs. 

The activity 

For the interactive aspect of the event, attendees will be asked to provide comments on ‘Ensuring inclusivity and diversity in PPIE’.   

• It’s 2035 and our PPIE community is truly inclusive and diverse… so how did we get there and what top tips could we share with our PPIE community in 2025?    

• Consider: Who is involved? How do they participate? What’s different from today?   

• Think about the PPIE you are currently involved with, your own experience or through listening to other people’s experiences. 

Event Programme:  

• 12.15pm – Registration and lunch (attendees in person)  

• 1pm – Event to start    

• Hosts opening address and introduction to theme 

• Guest speakers   

• Comfort break  

• Group activity  

• ‘Outstanding Contribution to PPIE’ Awards ceremony 

• Closing Remarks 

• 4pm end of event/networking  

 

To find out more about PPIE: watch our short film, sign up to the monthly Public Engagement Digest, visit the PPIE blog, follow @FBMH_SR, visit our PPIE Toolkit or contact srbmh@manchester.ac.uk.  

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