How the patient-centered outcomes research institute is engaging patients and others in shaping its research agenda

Rachael Fleurence*, Joe V. Selby, Kara Odom-Walker, Gail Hunt, David Meltzer, Jean R. Slutsky, Clyde Yancy

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

184 Scopus citations

Abstract

Clinical research has been driven traditionally by investigators, from generating research questions and outcomes through analysis and release of study results. Building on the work of others, the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) is tapping into its broadbased stakeholder community-especially patients, caregivers, and their clinicians-to generate topics for research, help the institute prioritize those topics, select topics for funding, and ensure patients' involvement in the design of research projects. This article describes PCORI's approach, which is emblematic of the organization's mandate under the Affordable Care Act to seek meaningful ways to integrate the patient's voice into the research process, and describes how it is being used in selection of research that PCORI will fund. We also describe challenges facing our approach, including a lack of common language and training on the part of patients and resistance on the part of researchers to questions that are not researcher generated. Faced with the reality that PCORI will not be able to fund all research questions posed to it, there will also be difficult decisions to make when selecting those that have the highest priority for funding.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)393-400
Number of pages8
JournalHealth Affairs
Volume32
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2013

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Health Policy

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