Participate2Engage

Overview

Project Summary

PARTICIPATE2ENGAGE aims to contribute to the development of a human-centered design approach through the co-creation of health literacy content.

The project aims to promote autonomy in decision-making and the empowerment of citizens, through the creation of a scientific culture and the involvement of society in participatory research dynamics.

Main Goals

Society is deeply influenced by scientific developments, and it is crucial to promote proper science communication and effective involvement of citizens in scientific research. Human-centred design, which defends the collaborative participation of the end-users in the design process, is a powerful way to engage citizens in science. In this project, we seek to explore the role of participatory research, particularly human-centred design, in promoting effective engagement, communication, and health literacy. This seed project will focus on Autoimmune encephalitis (AE), a group of immune disorders of the nervous system that is currently poorly communicated. Raising awareness and promoting health literacy about AE could foster autonomy in decision-making and empowerment of AE patients, resulting in earlier diagnosis and successful treatment. We propose to create infographics about AE, by engaging AE patients/families through focus groups and co-design sessions. We propose to disseminate the infographics and evaluate their impact in improving science communication and health literacy about AE. In the end, we expect to create a framework to be used for public engagement and scientific culture promotion, not only in AE but also in other brain disorders and neuroscience topics. Ultimately, we hope that this collaborative way of conducting research will improve literacy in brain disorders and empower citizens, particularly patients, by improving their understanding of their disorder.

Project Details