The Patient Advisory Board is firmly anchored at the NCT Heidelberg. This is also reflected by the fact that the NCT will once again be awarded the title of Self-Help-Friendly Hospital in spring 2022. In order to further improve the cooperation between the advisory board members and medical staff in care and research, the patient advisory board has reorganized its work. To this end, the members have named five areas, each of which is the responsibility of several advisory board members. These are: clinical trials, public relations, relatives, aftercare and palliative care.
This marks the beginning of a new phase in the work of the Patient Advisory Board. Anne Müller, coordinator of self-help, patient representation and the pilot service at the NCT Heidelberg, reports: "While the first few years after its founding were about building up structures and recruiting members, we are now concentrating to strengthening the interaction of the patient advisory board with internal processes of the NCT."
The Patient Advisory Board is available to patients and their relatives as a neutral point of contact for their concerns. The work of the Patient Advisory Board also supports the NCT's goal of making clinical research more patient-oriented. The Advisory Board supports researchers in an advisory role as early as the study development phase. They provide support, For example, they support the creation of information materials or declarations of consent for clinical studies.
For Annette Hans, deputy spokesperson of the NCT Heidelberg Patient Advisory Board, the advantages of the new organization are clear: "All members of the Advisory Board have particular experience and strengths. The focus areas support us in making even better use of our individual skills."
Anne Müller adds, "The new structure makes the work oft he advisory board members easier. After all, they all work on a voluntary basis and are often additionally active in self-help groups. My task is therefore also to relieve the administrative burden on the Advisory Board. This allows everyone to focus on what is most important: the patient perspective."
Would you also like to get involved as a patient representative at the NCT Heidelberg?
You are welcome to do so by email to Anne Müller (anne.mueller@med.uni-heidelberg.de) or directly to the Patient Advisory Board (patientenbeirat@nct-heidelberg.de).
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