Ellie Scott and Dr Owen Tomlinson offer insights into their recent Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) project, using the PPIE Participant Payment Fund. As part of ongoing research into brain blood flow and vascular health, the project invited stroke survivors to engage with research investigating feasible interventions to improve patient health.
Amount of award: £1000
Working with stroke survivors at the St Luke’s cerebrovascular laboratory, this study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of exercise interventions and vascular measurement techniques. Both exercise and vascular assessments (i.e., measuring the health of the body’s blood vessels) are valuable methods of improving health after a stroke, providing they are accessible and acceptable to patients. By incorporating the patient voice, we sought to ensure that our research approach was both practical and meaningful, while also providing participants with firsthand experience of our laboratory environment. It is hoped that this work can inform the development of future studies, ensuring they are well-aligned with the needs, abilities and experiences of both participants and researchers.
We engaged with members of the University’s Action After Stroke group: a student-led volunteer program that uses exercise to support individuals recovering from stroke or brain injury. Members were invited to take part in a feasibility study involving two separate laboratory visits. In these visits, we used ultrasound to measure blood vessels, as well as conducting a submaximal fitness test.
The PPIE component of the project highlighted several challenges associated with working with our potential target population, including the use of equipment not suited for all post-stroke abilities, difficulties with movement around the laboratory, and the need for two researchers to be present at all times. This feedback is crucial for informing the design of future studies, allowing us to make appropriate adjustments to better accommodate and address these challenges. However, the project also illustrated how rewarding it is to work with such resilient, inspirational individuals – a key highlight from the work.
Following this, I have been able to refine the direction of my research to ensure future studies into brain blood flow and vascular health are both practical and impactful. Participant feedback was overwhelmingly positive—everyone expressed enjoyment in taking part and valued the opportunity to contribute to the research design. All participants also expressed enthusiasm about being involved in future, related research, marking the study as a resounding success!
We plan to continue our research into brain blood flow and vascular health, beginning with studies in healthy populations. This approach will enable us to explore potential methods for improving vascular health in a controlled setting before extending the research to clinical or higher-risk groups. The PPIE and feasibility work were instrumental in shaping the direction of the research—without them, we may have encountered unforeseen challenges later in the process. Moving forward, the experience we have gained from this project will help us to effectively engage with, and learn from, people recovering from stroke.