Researchers who are conducting patient-oriented research, which engages patients in research to improve health and health care, may find a home for their research in CMAJ Open and CMAJ, announces an editorial in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal)
"The CMAJ Group has committed to advancing patient-oriented research by creating a dedicated research collection in CMAJ Open for research studies that particularly specify how patients were engaged as part of the research team and how their contributions developed the work," writes Dr. Kirsten Patrick, Deputy Editor, CMAJ, with coauthors Maryam Kebbe and Diane Aubin.
More than five years ago, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) launched its Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR) to advance research that "engages patients as partners, focusses on patient-identified priorities and improves patient outcomes." Ten provincial and territorial SPOR units across Canada help researchers and others conduct this type of research with the input of patients and caregivers to improve patient health and the health system.
Patient-oriented research requires a major shift in the way we conduct health research," writes Dr. Kirsten Patrick, Deputy Editor, CMAJ, with coauthors. "Some researchers may view the engagement of patients in health research as unnecessary since it adds substantial complexity and expense to health research."
Patient engagement in research can help researchers understand priorities that are important to patients and caregivers, such as symptom relief for people with kidney disease rather than hemodialysis measures prioritized by researchers. It is based on the principle that people with lived experience know their health care needs and how to improve their quality of life if living with an illness.
Patients, as well as other peer reviewers, will review research for inclusion in the CMAJ Open collection to ensure patient voices are heard.
"While CMAJ will also consider high-quality patient-oriented research that is novel and clinically important, we hope this dedicated open-access collection of rigorous research in CMAJ Open will provide a much-needed evidence base for how to engage patients in research as well as learnings in this growing field of research," say Dr. Patrick and colleagues.
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Journal
Canadian Medical Association Journal