Springing into Impact | Two events that celebrated partnership in research

A couple of recent events this spring have really highlighted the value of partnership in research. In March, Ann and Joanne, who are both public contributors to our Hospital at Home (HaH) and safety co‑production project, joined me for the national HaH Conference. Two months later, Joanne attended the University’s Impact Festival, where our work was recognised through the Research Engagement Newcomer Award. Both of these events gave us the opportunity to reflect on collaborative research.

On 4 March, Ann and Joanne travelled from Newcastle to Edinburgh to attend a couple of days of presentations at the decadent Royal College of Physicians. Across two days of the conference, we heard from researchers, clinicians, and innovators from across the UK, Scandinavia, and more. The overall theme was clear: How might we develop HaH services in ways that deliver careful, kind, and person‑centred care? 

We had a chance to present our co‑produced project which we developed during the Advanced Care Research Centre Academy training year. We were honoured to share the co-produced safety toolkit and we were met with reflections on the importance of grounding safety work in lived experience, something that is still not consistently embedded across the field. Although Ann and Joanne were the only patient representatives there, the conference closed with the “Patients and Carers Perspectives” session, which provided a welcome message that perhaps things are starting to shift. 

Ann enjoyed the talks on Point‑of‑Care Ultrasound and the experiences of rural HaH teams. She reflected on how much it depends on the patient and their family. Whether they feel comfortable being treated at home whether they have support and how isolation or worsening symptoms might affect their wellbeing. She emphasised the need for communication especially in rural areas.

Joanne was drawn to discussions about risk, especially the larger social and health inequalities that influence people’s experiences of illness. She explained how focusing on earlier recognition and preventing infections could really help reduce some of the risks disproportionately affecting those who live in poorer health. She also expressed interest in learning from paediatric HaH models that are emerging, which offer knowledge relevant across the life course. 

For my own reflection, the conference reinforced the importance of not simply comparing hospital‑based and at‑home models but rather explore what unique qualities new models such as HaH can contribute. The conference also highlighted gaps, such as exclusion criteria and variation in preferences that need to be considered in emerging care models. Ann and Joanne’s thoughts continue to shape how I think about inclusive methodologies, recruitment, and the emotional aspects of safety.

In May, the Impact Festival spotlighted creative collaboration and celebrating the various ways research impact can manifest. I was overjoyed to have Joanne join me to receive the Research Engagement Newcomer Award for the work we started last summer and continue to develop.

Both events remind me that research is rarely done alone. Thoughtful research is built on dialogue, challenge, curiosity, collective wisdom, and trust. I am grateful to Ann and Joanne for their generosity, honesty, as well as their contributions to writing this blog, and I look forward to continuing this work. 

I am grateful to the Usher Institute’s Small Grant for funding Ann and Joanne’s participation at the HaH Conference, and to the ACRC Academy for supporting Joanne’s attendance at the Impact Festival. 

You can find out more about those nominated for the Impact Festival Award on the SharePoint site (requires Edinburgh University login):

Impact Festival Prizes 2026

You can see Rachel describe her work, as well as the other Usher prizewinner's video, here:

Usher Institute celebrates success at the 2026 Research Impact Awards | Usher Institute

Find more about Hospital at Home here:

Hospital at Home and Safety Collaborative Workshop