Blog by Victoria Bartle

After joining the RSF PPIE community, which was established to support Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) within the consortia, I was invited to speak at the first AIM RSF conference. The organisers wanted to begin the conference with a public contributor to emphasise the importance of PPIE in these projects and the consortia as a whole. I was more than happy to accept the opportunity to speak.
Although I was unable to attend the meeting in person, I felt quite nervous about addressing a live audience virtually. However, after discussing the session with Monica Fletcher from the Touring Institute, who was facilitating with me, I gained confidence in my message. I felt prepared to share my insights, knowing they were relevant and important. We opted for a question-and-answer format instead of a formal presentation, which alleviated the pressure of creating slides.
By the time I spoke at the conference, I had become significantly more involved in AI-Multiply. This allowed me to discuss my participation in MLTC research across various projects, as well as share my personal perspectives and lived experiences with MLTCs.
After my conversation with Monica and my virtual interaction with the audience, I had to log out and continue with my day, uncertain about how my presentation had been received or whether the researchers had absorbed my message. Fortunately, Olivia kept me updated throughout the day, sharing feedback from attendees and reassuring me about the usefulness and impact of my contribution.