Patients as teachers: a new approach to patient involvement.

Patients as Teachers is an approach to patient involvement which involves bringing together a key sub-group for a speciality with a facilitator to focus on particular aspects of the service. This approach was used by the rheumatology team in Bradford to elicit feedback from South Asian women for whom English is not the first language. The focus groups generated constructive feedback about issues relating to, the hospital environment, information giving and service provision. This was fed back to clinicians at an educational meeting attended by lay representatives, and agreed actions were determined. Progress made on the recommendations was evaluated at six months.