What matters to you? Public and patient involvement in the design stage of research

Public and patient involvement (PPI) is encouraged at every stage of research to make sure that research is relevant, and addresses what matters most to the person by working together as equal partners . This commentary reflects on how PPI at the beginning of a research idea can positively influence the design, methods, and outcomes of the research. This stage of research is known as the ‘design phase’. It is important that although ethical approval is not needed for this phase, that the researcher acts in an ethically conscious way. The doctoral research ‘What factors and influences demonstrate quality and impact of the Southeast Consultant development Programme?’ commented on in this paper, has been mapped against some standards and has gained ethical approval for publication.