CAPA is a not-for-profit organization made up of and by people living with arthritis. We support people living with arthritis by providing education and support and advocating to government to ensure policies meet the needs of our community. We also act as advisors or patient partners in research by providing input and advice based on our own lived experiences to research teams. As a patient partner in research, you can be involved in different ways like helping develop research questions important to patients and giving advice through the various stages of a project through to the translation of the research knowledge to the patient community and policy makers.

In 2022, we tested out a new approach to better equip patient partners to act as advisors in research by recruiting and training a first cohort of patient partners in research. Building on our efforts, we are now accepting applications for two training programs:

• An introductory training program
• An intermediate to advanced training program

This new recruitment cycle and training program is supported by the Office for Patient Engagement in Research Activities (OPERA) at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute.

Description and expectations of the introductory program

We are offering an introductory training program to help patient partners learn about health research and how they can be involved as part of a study team. This free program involves:

• Completing four online modules independently (you will receive a certificate of completion for each module you complete) within the requested timelines (approximately November 2023)
• Attending one to two virtual meetings (about an hour for each meeting) to share experiences and ask questions about the training modules
• Interacting with an experienced patient partner who will be assigned as a mentor to enhance your learning
• Contributing to discussions and seeking advice from a mentor using an on-line platform (we will be using Basecamp and will provide support in learning how to use this application)
• Providing constructive feedback about your experiences with the training and mentoring, e.g., completing evaluation surveys
• Dedicating time to participate in the program on a volunteer basis (it is expected to take 3-4 hours to complete the on-line training modules)

Upon completion of the program, we will actively promote and match successful individuals with interested researchers. Once you are matched with a research team, the team will provide you with supports to be included, which may include compensation or other recognition depending on your personal circumstances. As much as possible, we will attempt to match you with an experienced patient partner to support your ongoing learning in research projects.

Description and expectations of the intermediate/advanced training program

We are offering an intermediate to advanced training program to help patient partners become more involved and engaged in health research. Our hope is the training program will support patient partners to increase the level of participation in research, such as involvement in senior committee and other leadership roles. This program is unique in that you will be involved in informing the design of the training program and complete and actively participate in the new learning modules. The purpose of this participatory approach is to ensure that learning topics and approaches are based on the needs identified by patient partners. This free program involves:

• Attending two to three virtual meetings (about an hour for each meeting) to discuss learning needs and identify potential topics and approaches. These meetings will occur between October 2023 and January 2024.
• Completing surveys and other pre-meeting materials and provide feedback as necessary to help inform the design of the learning modules.
• Attending and actively participating in approximately five to eight learning modules which will be approximately one hour in duration. The learning modules will be available beginning in May 2024 and will require completion by September 2024. We will make asynchronous content available to make it more accessible to patient partners.
• Contributing to discussions using an on-line platform (we will be using Basecamp and will provide support in learning how to use this application)
• Providing constructive feedback about your experiences with the training and mentoring, e.g., completing evaluation surveys

How to apply

If you are interested in participating in one or both of these training programs, please email or send a short video to contact@arthritispatient.ca by September 30, 2023. Please indicate which program(s) you are interested in applying to and include some information about yourself including:

• Why you’re interested in participating in this patient partner research training;
• How you see yourself contributing to arthritis research (skills, experience, or perspectives);
• Where you live;
• Any community affiliation that you wish to share (e.g., a particular ethno-cultural community, LGBTQ2S+, youth). Note that this is not required.

• Any other information you think would be important for us to know about you and your motivation to participate.

Contact us by e-mail if you have any questions about the training opportunity and/or applying.

We will contact all individuals who apply to let you know whether or not we can offer you a spot in the training program. Thank you in advance for your interest in participating.