Being clear about why you want to involve consumers will help you to identify who it is appropriate to involve and how best to involve them. Consumers can help to ensure that issues which are important to consumers and therefore to the NHS as a whole are identified and prioritised. Consumers can help to ensure that research doesn't just measure outcomes that are identified and considered important by professionals. Consumers can help with the recruitment of their peers. Consumers can access people who are often marginalised, such as people from black and minority ethnic communities.
Consumers can disseminate the results of research and work to ensure that changes are implemented.
The involvement of consumers is also becoming an increasing political priority.