Most clinical staff working in the ED are clinical facing, allowing little to no time to develop research or their skills in research. The primary aim of the CBG is to support, develop, and undertake research of importance for Robina ED with Robina ED staff, HHS Executives, and consumers.

Our strategic vision for the CBG is to have research an integral part of clinical practice and education at Robina ED and that guidelines and policies are informed by our research. It will be guided by the GCH ED Research Strategy which has 4 goals: 1) Organise emergency care research; 2) Build and streamline research capacity; 3) Promote excellence, relevance, and impact of research; and 4) Develop, strengthen, and sustain research partnerships.

Structure: To build research capacity specifically for Robina ED staff, the structure will involve the employment of a Robina-based ED Research Fellow (part-time) and Research Nurse (part-time), as well as consultancy from a consumer advisor, and health economist/statistician (see budget); Engagement of health service executives, local and international university academics, collaborators from other agencies; and specific mentorship from other ED research leaders using tested frameworks (NASEM, 2019).

Expected benefits of the CBG include: active research engagement and collaboration leading to partnerships between Robina ED clinicians, researchers, HHS Executive, consumers and external collaborators in the development of 2 projects led by staff at Robina with support from researchers; the development and sustainment of capacity building mechanisms for: research involvement opportunities for Robina ED clinicians, dissemination of research updates and findings, and research mentorship.

Consumer engagement in emergency healthcare research: A national cross-sectional study

Consumer engagement in research is a local, national and international priority and has been described as research being carried out ‘with’ or ‘by’ consumers, rather than ‘to’, ‘about’ or ‘for’ them. Our recent scoping review on patient and public involvement in international emergency care research (under review) found only two (of the 28) studies were undertaken in Australia and reported consumer engagement in Emergency department (ED) research, illustrating that the vision of integrated consumer and community engagement in research is a long way from the current reality.

Consumer engagement can improve the quality and relevance of research, identify unmet needs, reduce wasted research efforts, and improve ED services and patient experiences, particularly for vulnerable and high-risk patient groups. Whilst there has been an increase in consumer engagement in international research, opportunities for consumers to contribute to emergency care research in Australia are scarce and there are very few documented studies of consumer engagement in ED research.

This project aims to understand the current challenges and barriers to consumer engagement being undertaken in ED research, both in Queensland and nationally in Australia. The project will also identify readiness for consumer engagement, exploring the factors which influence, drive and support researchers to engage consumers in ED research. In addition, it will also scope the potential for a statewide / National Emergency collaborative network for Consumer Engagement and assess support among key stakeholders in emergency care in Queensland and nationally.