Fra deltakelse til brukermedvirkning i helseforskning

Abstract

Patient and public involvement (PPI) in health research has gained widespread attention and implementation in the last 10–15 years. Numerous funding institutions now require research professions to state how they intend to involve people whose lives are implicated in the research project. However, as the various disciplines within health sciences are built on diverse epistemological traditions, the involvement of patients and public takes various forms and poses different challenges to researchers and research subjects. The aim of this chapter is to explore how PPI is conceptualised across a range of research projects. We describe different epistemological frameworks and how these influence the knowledge practices of professionals working in a range of health institutions. We approach public/patient involvement in two ways. First, we undertake a brief historical review of three research traditions where interaction between scientists and implicated parties is a central pivot. We term these: 1) pragmaticinteractionist, 2) ideological-political, and 3) consumerist research. We conclude by discussing three dilemmas of how patient and public involvement in research challenges the epistemological diversity of professional knowledge.