Announcing the UCL Institute of Healthcare Engineering Engagement Awards

Developing a culture where public engagement is embedded into practice and valued by staff requires support, encouragement and recognition of effort and achievement. We know there are teams and individuals from across UCL who are delivering phenomenal and innovative public engagement activities in our field. The IHE Engagement Awards aim to recognise and celebrate the people undertaking these exemplary public engagement activities. 

Our vision is that the IHE Engagement Awards will provide you with the formal recognition you deserve, alongside a powerful boost to your morale (and your CV!). 

Eligibility 

To be eligible: 

• Activities must have been led by a current UCL student or staff member. 

• Activities must have taken place between June 2022 and June 2023.

• Projects can still be ongoing, but you must be able to describe the evaluation and impact of your activities so far – so keep this in mind! The activities must relate to healthcare engineering or digital health research. 

We welcome applications from students, researchers, and professional services staff members at any stage of their careers. 

We recognise that most projects are a group endeavour, so please list all the team members involved in your project (this will not be counted as part of the word limit), but name one individual to act as the main point of contact.  

Award categories 

The process will run on self-nomination for one of the following categories: 

PhD and Early-Career Researchers 

This award category recognises outstanding public engagement efforts by PhD students and early-career researchers (within 5 years of their PhD award).  

It acknowledges individuals who have demonstrated exceptional skill in effectively engaging with the public, communicating their research, and fostering meaningful interactions that enhance public understanding and appreciation of healthcare engineering.  

This category is open to PhD students and early-career researchers who have led their own projects or made a significant contribution to an activity.  

Community engagement and Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) 

The Community Engagement award acknowledges the significant contributions made by individuals or teams in healthcare engineering who have actively and effectively engaged with specific local communities or patient groups. 

This award recognises efforts to involve community members and patients in the research process, foster collaborations, and address healthcare engineering challenges that directly impact the community's well-being.  

The recipients of this award will have demonstrated a deep understanding of community needs, successfully engaged community stakeholders, and implemented projects or initiatives that have positively impacted the lives of community members. 

Co-production 

The Co-production award celebrates exceptional collaborative efforts in the field of healthcare engineering, recognising partnerships between researchers and external stakeholders that result in the co-creation of knowledge, resources, and solutions.  

This award highlights initiatives that emphasise the equal involvement of all partners in the research process, promoting mutual learning and shared decision-making.  

The recipients of this award will have demonstrated exemplary co-production practices, showcasing the value of inclusive collaboration and its impact on healthcare engineering outcomes. 

Communicating our research 

The Communicating Research award acknowledges individuals or teams who have effectively communicated their healthcare engineering research to diverse audiences outside the academic community. 

This award recognises excellence in science communication, emphasising the ability to present complex concepts in accessible and engaging ways.  

The recipients of this award will have demonstrated outstanding communication skills, employing innovative approaches such as storytelling, visual media, and interactive methods to effectively convey the relevance and impact of their research to a wider audience. 

Institutional leadership 

The Institutional Leadership award recognises an individual or team within UCL who has played a pivotal role in fostering a culture of public engagement in the field of healthcare engineering.  

This award acknowledges leaders who have successfully embedded public engagement principles within their departments, faculties and beyond at UCL – creating an environment that values and supports engagement efforts.  

The recipients of this award will have demonstrated strategic leadership, implemented initiatives that promote and recognise public engagement, and empowered other researchers and students to actively engage with the public in meaningful ways.  

Submitting your application 

Entries must consist of no more than 1,000 words and cover the following criteria: 

• Project overview, aim and budget 

• How did you identify, find, and collaborate with your target public? 

• How was the project idea developed? (Please describe the project’s purpose, the research it supports, and the planning involved). 

• Describe how the project was delivered and implemented. 

• How did you evaluate the project’s impact? What data was collected, measured, evaluated, and reported? 

You should submit your entry as a PDF file to healthcare-eng@ucl.ac.uk with the subject line IHE Engagement Awards. 

You can also include supporting materials (photographs, press clippings, video links) in a separate PDF no longer than 3 pages. 

The application closing date has been extended to 11.59 pm on Monday 24 July. (It was previously 10 July).

What we are looking for

We are looking for applications that clearly demonstrate a robust, innovative approach to public engagement following the NCCPE definition: 

“Engagement is a two-way process, involving interaction and listening with the goal of generating mutual benefit”. 

We are interested in the outputs and outcomes of your activities, but we also want to see that you have thought carefully about your intended audience, their needs and experiences, the opportunities for mutual learning, and how you measured this.  

What barriers did you encounter or predict, and how did you overcome these? How has this project enhanced your research and the public’s understanding? How has your project demonstrated public engagement excellence? What is the ongoing or long-term impact of this activity?

Next steps 

If you have any questions about the awards, please contact Alice Hardy, IHE Communications and Impact Manager: a.hardy@ucl.ac.uk 

Prize winners will receive a personalised trophy and certificate at an awards ceremony in late July. Join us for drinks, nibbles, networking – and a celebration of public engagement!