Table 1 Levels of involvement for consumer and community members, expectations and the training required for each Tier
Level of involvement | Expectation | |
|---|---|---|
Tier 1: Consumer subscriber | • Receive electronic communications and research progress updates • Minimal research input | • Respond to basic surveys, questionnaires, stay engaged via research updates and newsletters |
Tier 2: Document reviewers | • Review videos, websites, information sheets, surveys, grants, publications, and media releases | • Review and provide feedback for documentation that can vary in complexity |
Tier 3: Research buddy | • Participate in research project design, implementation, evaluation, and dissemination of results • Consumers and community members can engage with researchers and students to understand more about the research conducted, the challenges and the people behind it | • Attend meetings with researchers • Commit personal time to read and prepare for meetings • Provide input and advice on the development of research projects, directions, and grants |
Tier 4: Consumer advocate | • Provide advice as an advocate of the broader consumer/community perspective • Sit on committee meetings and have good understanding of the research projects and broader research themes to provide advice | • Participate in quarterly committee meetings as Chairs • Advise on the consumer experience • Recruit new consumer and community members and mentor new members as appropriate • Develop and conduct training for prospective consumer and community members and for researchers on all aspects of CCI in research |