Aim: To raise research awareness and opportunities for staff, patients and the public in the local Norfolk area using the @JPUHResearch Twitter account.
Method: Using the hashtag #WhyWeDoResearch, people have their photographs taken holding a #WhyWeDoResearch sign, with their personal 'why' written underneath. These are uploaded to twitter ensuring the hashtag is included in the tweet so that there is a campaign thread which can be easily followed.
Impacts:
1. Twitter followers began to get involved quickly which created a snow-ball effect on the campaign
2. The campaign has been extended indefinitely due to the demand of followers
3. Locally: Norfolk and Suffolk media engagement http://www.jpaget.nhs.uk/news-media/news-events/2015/february/paget-research-campaign-goes-global/
4. Nationally: NHS Trusts, charities, private organisations and commercial companies have got involved and shared their pictures. Stroke Research York, led by Michael Keeling (@keeling_michael) joined the campaign as formal collaborators by Jan 2015.
5. Internationally: Global engagement and involvement from researchers and patients in America, Australia, Italy, Spain, South Korea, Ireland joined by week five.
6. Press release by the James Paget University Hospital and York Teaching Hospital.
7. Campaign video created and produced by Claire Gibbs and Michael Keeling providing new campaign followers with background. This was viewed >400 times in 72 hours.
8. Campaign video is being nominated for a Chartered Institute of Public Relations Award by the JPUH Communications Team
9. Evidence that Twitter can be used as a medium for collaboration on a global scale.
Conclusion: We have achieved our initial aim of raising awareness of research and research opportunities for patients and staff. More impacts than we could have imagined have come from this project and it is a clear positive promotion for the use of social media in research, in a way which has not happened before.
Most importantly, the campaign has started a conversation about research through a medium where patients, public and staff can interact directly and quickly together.