P287 - CALLS FOR ENGAGING PATIENT PARTNERS HAVE LARGELY GONE UNHEARD IN CARDIOVASCULAR RESEARCH

Background: The expectation that researchers will engage patient partners to co-create, conduct and disseminate research is reflected in an increasing number of guidelines and recommendations, particularly from funders in Europe and North America, and with support from scholarly journals and societies. This scoping review assessed the extent and nature of patient engagement in clinical cardiovascular research.

METHODS AND RESULTS: We conducted a systematic search of MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science across seven cardiovascular disease areas - Arrhythmias, Cardiomyopathies, Heart Failure, Ischemic Heart Disease, Stroke, Hypertension, and Valve Diseases. Journal articles were screened against our inclusion criteria until 300 were identified for each disease area. Publication year, journal, funder, author(s), country of affiliation, and mentions of patient engagement were extracted.

Of the 2100 journal articles reviewed, only five (0.24%) mentioned patient engagement. In these articles, the descriptions of engagement activities were minimal, with no references to the GRIPP2 checklist and no patient partners listed as authors. Among 105 randomized controlled trials analyzed, 84% were registered on trial registries and only one entry mentioned patient engagement. These findings highlight a significant gap in both the practice and reporting of patient engagement in cardiovascular research.

Conclusion: Our research suggests that there is a significant implementation gap between mission or policy stated objectives pertaining to patient-oriented research and the realities of what gets done.

Transforming the culture and practice in cardiovascular research to ensure consistent and meaningful patient engagement requires that research institutions, funding agencies, and academic journals set clear expectations and hold researchers accountable. We identify actions that these actors could take to create a research ecosystem where patient engagement is the normative practice.