How can people get involved in citizen science, or "people-powered research"? Jenni Burt talks to Michael Hornberger, the co-creator of Sea Hero Quest. Sea Hero Quest is a smartphone game that gathers data on how people find their way around their environment, with implications for detecting dementia. Jenni and Michael reflect on the benefits that citizen science approaches can bring, as well as on the challenges.

How can simulation contribute to efforts to improve the quality and safety of healthcare? 

Jenni Burt discusses this question with one of the leaders in the healthcare simulation field, Victoria Brazil. They reflect on how simulation, originally used for medical education, contributes to healthcare improvement, and discuss practical examples, possible pitfalls, and much more.

About our guest

Victoria Brazil is Professor of Emergency Medicine and Director of Simulation at Bond University and Gold Coast Health in Australia. She is also co-producer and regular host of the Simulcast podcast, which explores developments in healthcare simulation around the world. Her research focuses on simulation, high performing teams, and quality improvement for health services.

Why and how do we engage and involve people – other than researchers – in the study of healthcare improvement? 

Jenni Burt is joined by Anna Burhouse, who leads the Quality Improvement Arm at Northumbria Healthcare Foundation Trust, and by Lisa Hinton, Senior Research Associate at THIS Institute. They discuss what we have learned over recent years about widening involvement in healthcare studies.

About our guests

Anna Burhouse leads RUBIS.Qi Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust’s Quality Improvement arm and is Chair of THIS Institute’s Engagement and Involvement Advisory Board.

Lisa Hinton is a Senior Research Associate at THIS Institute.

How can ethical issues in healthcare be studied and potentially improved in a systematic, evidence-based way? 

Jenni Burt explores this question from both a practical and theoretical perspective. Her guests are Zoe Fritz, consultant physician in acute medicine at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, and Richard Holton, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge.

About our guests

Zoe Fritz is a Wellcome Fellow in Society and Ethics at THIS Institute and a consultant physician in acute medicine at Addenbrooke’s Hospital.

Richard Holton is Professor of Philosophy and Fellow of Peterhouse at the University of Cambridge. His main research interest is moral psychology and related areas, and he is also interested in ethics, philosophy of law, and philosophy of language.

How can we transfer insights from one healthcare setting to a very different healthcare setting? 

Jenni Burt explores with her guests how healthcare improvement outcomes might be transferred from one setting to another. She’s joined by Michael Englesbe, surgeon at the University of Michigan, and by James McGowan, public health registrar at Public Health England and Clinical Research Associate at THIS Institute.

About our guests

Michael Englesbe is professor of surgery at the University of Michigan, the director of the 17 Statewide Quality Collaboratives.  He also serves as the co-director of the Michigan Opioid Prescribing and Engagement Network. His interests include improving the quality of care through practice change and the relationship between costs and quality of care. He is also working to understand and combat the opioid crisis in Michigan and leveraging acute health events for population health impact.

James McGowan is an honorary specialty registrar in public health at Public Health England and Clinical Research Associate at THIS Institute.

How do we make sure the results of research studies reach the people who can act on them? 

Jenni Burt discusses this challenge with Andrew Ibrahim, surgeon at the University of Michigan, and with James Piercy, communications and engagement officer at the John Innes Centre in Norwich. They explore how the output of healthcare improvement studies reaches diverse audiences, including policymakers, academics, frontline healthcare staff, and patients.

About our guests

Andrew M. Ibrahim MD, MSc is an Assistant Professor of Surgery, Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan.  He was the first Creative Director for the journal, Annals of Surgery, where he founded the #VisualAbstract, a novel visual technique to disseminate research. The technique has been adopted by more 100 journals and now serves as an editor at the JAMA Network. He is also the chief medical officer in the healthcare practice at HOK, a global design and architecture firm. His interests include evaluating population level strategies to improve healthcare delivery and in applying architecture and design to improve population health.

James Piercy is communications and engagement officer at the John Innes Centre in Norwich, a freelance science communicator and member of THIS Institute’s Engagement and Involvement Advisory Board. He is interested in bringing complex science to audiences of all ages, which includes training and mentoring scientists to develop their communications skills, and writing, producing, and delivering science workshops.

Listen to THIS is a podcast series covering diverse aspects of healthcare improvement research.