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May the patient voice be with you. Designing research that matters.

Schedule

12 March 2026, 9.00-12.00

Why attend?

Many researchers still do research about patients, but rarely with them. That’s a missed opportunity. Without patient input, research often overlooks what really matters and valuable knowledge risks being lost or ignored. In this workshop we explore what meaningful patient involvement actually looks like. Not as a tick-box exercise, but as a practical way to improve the quality, relevance and impact of your research. Together with a patient expert we discuss common pitfalls, share practical tools and show how to apply them across different project phases. You’ll leave with a clearer understanding of what patient involvement can add to your research, and how to approach it in a concrete and realistic way.

Learning outcomes:

By the end of the workshop, the participants will be able to

• Explain why patient involvement is essential from an impact, quality, and waste-reduction perspective.

• Identify common misconceptions about patient involvement and distinguish between different levels and forms of participation.

• Recognize patients as knowledge holders with unique experiential expertise.

• Apply the Utrecht Participation Matrix to plan meaningful patient involvement tailored to research phases and goals.

• Draft accessible and respectful communication (e.g. invitation letters, info materials) for patient contributors.

• Design a patient involvement plan tailored to their own research.

• Take responsibility for continuous engagement with patient experts beyond one-off consultations.

Maximum number of participants: 20

Tailored workshops

The workshops of the Grant Navigator Training Programme can be booked stand alone or as a series. The practical assignments within the workshops are interconnected and can be used to develop a full proposal and network. Departments or institutes can request tailored workshops with a minimum of 20 participants. Tailored workshops are dependent on the capacity and availability of our trainers.

The trainers

Paul van Duuren and an invited patient expert

Conditions for participation

• Open to researchers and research managers at UMCG and partner organizations (RUG, 4 schools connected to RUG, Hanze, Isala Hospital, Leeuwarden Hospital, Martini Hospital).

• The modules of the Grant Writing Workshop are designed to build on each other, so they must be taken as a complete series of three and cannot be attended individually. The total participation fee for the full workshop is €300.

• First come, first served basis. Priority registration for UMCG employees.

Register

• Registration for October/November 2025 workshops opened in July 2025.

• Limited to 20 participants per workshop

• Participation is secured by transferring the participation fee.

• First come, first served basis.

Skills developed by attending the Grant Navigator Training Programme

• Strategic planning for funding

• Networking and collaboration

• Demonstrating innovation value

• Effective storytelling in proposals

• Writing competitive proposals

• Defining societal impacts of research

• Using AI in grant writing

Evaluation of learning

Each module concludes with a practical assignment to measure competency development.

Accessibility of training materials

Materials will be shared via e-mail with all participants.

Further information and contact us by e-mail