- Co-production is a method of engaging with communities, via partnership and power-sharing between professionals and communities to co-create solutions and decisions, with the intended long-term benefit of improving healthcare delivery and outcomes.
- There are a range of broader engagement methodologies and activities which can also be considered when involving the views of people and communities. Consideration should be given to what the most appropriate engagement method is to achieve the desired outcome.
- Trusts have obligations – legal duties – both to reduce health inequalities and to involve patients in their services. Both tasks can feel complex, due to the scale of the challenge within a demanding operational environment. However, trusts can combine efforts on both fronts, by seeing co-production and engagement as a potential solution for tackling health inequalities.
- Benefits of co-production and engagement with communities became more apparent during and after Covid-19. These benefits include: improved patient experience, empowering patients, improving quality of services, developing trust with communities, and contribution to the reduction of health inequalities.
- Co-production can increase understanding of why particular groups face barriers in accessing healthcare services, helping trusts to understand and overcome inequalities. It can also contribute to trusts' role as anchor institutions within local communities.
- An equity lens to co-production and engagement requires engaging with a diverse group of individuals, who are enabled to effectively share their experiences.
- Working in partnership with voluntary, community or social enterprise (VCSE) organisations is central to the delivery of engagement and co-production.
- Trusts and senior leaders play a crucial role in embedding a culture of co-production and engagement within their organisations by acting as champions for co-production and engagement work. Engagement activities require time, investment and resource.