“All together”: A case study demystifying patient and public involvement (PPI) in brief psychological interventions within a community mental health service for adults in the UK

The importance and value of involving patients and the public in the decision-making processes within services designed to support them, and research projects aimed at understanding and improving those services, have long been established. This is often referred to as Patient and Public Involvement (PPI). However, establishing good quality involvement work in practical terms is often less well understood and therefore, the uncertainty surrounding this can lead to hesitation by clinicians in practice. In this paper, we will share our lessons learned and the practical outcomes of PPI when applied in an NHS community mental health service for adults. We used Brief Psychological Interventions (BPIs) as a case study, demonstrating how PPI, in the form of public consultation, shaped the BPI service evaluation and led to intervention improvements. We aim to capture, ‘how PPI worked’ from the perspectives of the parties involved, including those with lived experience and the clinical team. We endeavour to bridge the gap between the rationale for involving patients and the public in decision-making processes and the practical challenges of implementing effective involvement work, contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of this crucial aspect of PPI.