Our latest blog in this series features Dr\u00a0Grazyna (Grace) Lipowska-Bhalla,\u00a0a lecturer in Cancer Biology\u00a0who is committed to raising the profile of PPIE education. Grace\u00a0was a winner in the\u00a0Individual category at the 2025 PPIE Awards.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Dr Grace Lipowska-Bhalla with her PPIE Award.<\/p><\/div>\n Dr\u00a0Grace\u00a0Lipowska-Bhalla<\/span><\/a>\u00a0began her PPIE journey\u00a0when she became\u00a0Programme Director\u00a0of the\u00a0MSc Molecular Pathology of\u00a0Cancer\u00a0course\u00a0at the University.\u00a0Recognising\u00a0that meaningful impact starts with education, she\u00a0has embedded PPIE principles into the curriculum, making them tangible and relevant for students.\u00a0Her approach equips future healthcare professionals\u00a0and researchers\u00a0with the knowledge and confidence to apply PPIE effectively in diverse professional contexts, fostering sustainable engagement practices that begin in the classroom and extend into\u00a0the real\u00a0world.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n To bring PPIE to life, Grace works closely with partners including\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>NIHR Biomedical Research Centre (BRC)<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Vocal<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Healthy Me Healthy Communities\u00a0(HMHC)<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0and the\u00a0<\/span>Wai Yin Society<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0Through\u00a0these collaborations, she introduces real-world examples\u00a0into her teaching, illustrating how PPIE can:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Through a partnership with\u00a0<\/span>Prevent Breast Cancer<\/span><\/a>, Grace also created\u00a0opportunities for students to connect directly with people affected by cancer. She has\u00a0facilitated\u00a0sessions where students meet patients and hear their experiences first-hand, building empathy and deepening their understanding of patient-centred care.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The students\u2019 reflections powerfully capture the value of this engagement. They described this experience as \u201cthe most impactful\u201d and \u201cmuch more powerful learning than from a textbook\u201d noting that it helped them \u201cbetter visualize the process patients go through\u201d and \u201cthink about other than medical aspects of cancer diagnosis such as impact on quality of life and on family.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Beyond her teaching, Grace contributes to the Faculty\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>PPIE Forum<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and the Divisional PPIE group, helping shape PPIE strategy,\u00a0education\u00a0and training.\u00a0She actively promotes opportunities for postgraduate students to take part in engagement activities, embedding these principles across the wider academic community.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The impact of her work reaches far beyond Manchester. Over the past two years, Grace has delivered PPIE education to more than 30 postgraduate students, both on campus and online, representing over a dozen countries across three continents. Around a quarter of these learners come from regions where PPIE is still\u00a0emerging, such as Uganda,\u00a0Kenya\u00a0and Ghana. By equipping healthcare professionals in these areas with practical knowledge and tools, Grace is helping to spark a ripple effect that could transform PPIE in health systems worldwide.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Additional\u00a0information:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n To find out more about PPIE: watch our\u202f<\/span>short film<\/span><\/a>, sign up to the monthly\u202f<\/span>Public Engagement Digest<\/span><\/a>, visit the\u202f<\/span>PPIE blog<\/span><\/a>, or contact\u00a0<\/span>srbmh@manchester.ac.uk<\/span><\/a>.\u202f\u202f\u202f\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/178\/2026\/02\/Grace-with-award-e1770995222418-200x300.jpg\")
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