Strengthening Patient Voices

The Strengthening Patient Voices Project is a collaboration between CoMO and Meningitis Research Foundation (MRF), one that started before the two organisations merged in 2021. The project recognises the powerful role patient groups and advocates play in defeating meningitis and aims to ensure patient voices remain at the heart of such efforts.

The pilot phase of this project occurred in 2018-2021, where we supported three patient groups in Spain, Denmark and the Netherlands to help increase their impact and build on their existing successes through peer-to-peer support and one-on-one mentorship. Read this blog post for an insight into the pilot.

 

The success of this pilot project means we have now moved into a new phase that aims to support people and organisations around the world. This new phase has seen the creation of the following resources, all free to access and available online for anyone to use.

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Advocacy case-studies

Nine case-studies have been developed through interviews with CoMO members in different contexts, including Peru, France, Turkey, Spain, Nigeria, the US, the UK and more. They share real-life examples where patient groups have experienced success, giving tips that people may find helpful in their work.

• If you’re working on developing an advocacy strategy on meningitis or related health-issues, access the case studies in English.

• Si vous travaillez à l'élaboration d'une stratégie de plaidoyer sur la méningite ou des problèmes de santé connexes, accédez aux études de cas en français.

• Si está trabajando en el desarrollo de una estrategia de promoción sobre la meningitis o problemas de salud relacionados, acceda a los estudios de casos en español.

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Using stories for effective health advocacy

Personal stories can be a powerful tool in health advocacy. They can help shift attitudes and opinions by bringing facts and statistics to life. The Using Stories for Effective Advocacy resource helps users understand how to use stories when they are calling for change, how to develop a simple story, how to protect those who tell their stories, and more.

This resource was developed in collaboration with patient groups from the CoMO network and will help organisations and advocates ensure that the voices of people with personal experience stay at the heart of campaigning for change.

• Resource available to download in English.

• Recurso narrativo para promover el cambio de políticas de salud - disponible para descargar en español.

• Ressource de narration pour conduire le changement des politiques de santé - disponible en téléchargement en français.

 

Planning for change: online training

Identify the impact you want to have and make it a reality by breaking down the steps that will help you get there.

The Planning for Change online training helps learners to identify the issues they want to address, the change they want to see, and the resources, activities, and progress milestones that will help them achieve it. Often called a ‘Theory of change’, the approach is a useful tool to help organisations and advocates plan their work, evaluate their impact and effectively communicate their work to their stakeholders. By the end of the training, all learners will be able to download the basic plan they have created throughout.

 

The expertise CoMO and MRF bring to the table:

CoMO brings 15 years of experience working with meningitis patient groups and campaign organisations around the world. MRF is a leading UK, Irish and international charity, established in 1989. MRF has been funding research, advocating, raising awareness and supporting health professionals and people affected by the disease in the UK and Ireland since this time. The two organisations merged in 2021.

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