Krysia is the Director of the Impact Accelerator Unit and Professor of Musculoskeletal Therapies Versus Arthritis. Krysia commenced a four-year term as National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Senior Investigator on 1st April 2019 following a four-year NIHR Knowledge Mobilisation Research Fellowship exploring the implementation of NICE guidelines for the care and management of osteoarthritis in primary care. Krysia is now an Adviser to the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Fellows and Scholars programme. She represents non-medical health professionals on guideline committees for osteoarthritis and implementation, including for NICE and EULAR (European League Against Rheumatism). Krysia is a member of the Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) Joint Effort Initiative steering committee, where she Chairs the Implementation group. Krysia is also a member of the Steering Group of OARSI Osteoarthritis Trial Bank for individual patient data meta-analyses. A Fellow of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, and NIHR Health Research Mentor, Krysia is also a member of the NIHR Knowledge Mobilisation Alliance.

Carolyn Chew-Graham is a GP Principal in Central Manchester, Professor of General Practice Research at Keele University, Honorary Professor of Primary Care Mental Health at Midlands Partnership Foundation Trust, Honorary Professor of Primary Care, University of Manchester, and Visiting Professor at the University of York.

Carolyn’s main areas of interest and expertise include the primary care management of people with mental health problems, multiple health conditions and unexplained symptoms; and the mental health and wellbeing of clinicians. She has qualitative research methods expertise, drawing on theories from social sciences and psychology, but always with a focus on clinical practice – trying to answer questions that are important to patients, their families, health care professionals and the NHS.

Carolyn chairs the RCGP ‘Research Paper of the Year’ panel and is ‘Curriculum Advisor, Mental Health’. She is Chair of the Society of Academic Primary Care.

Carolyn is currently a member of the NICE Clinical Guideline Development Group Depression (update) and a standing member of a NICE Quality Standards Advisory Group – work which directly impacts on commissioning decisions and patient care. She is Editor-in-Chief of the journal Health Expectations.

June was seconded from the Beth Johnson Foundation to the Haywood Foundation, based at the Haywood Hospital in 2012. There she set up and developed the Patient Information Education and Resource Centre (PIER). Staffed by volunteers, the PIER provides patients, their families, and carers access to information on arthritis and related conditions and signposts to other relevant organisations and services.

June joined the Beth Johnson Foundation in 1997 and as a Health Improvement Coordinator, she developed the Active in Age programme which trains people to deliver community led physical activity sessions. June also developed a Falls Prevention Programme for NHS Stoke on Trent and has written several consultation reports for local authorities.  In 2010 June gained a Masters’ Degree in Community Practice and Promoting Public Health at Staffordshire University.

June is a member of the Haywood Foundation and sits on several health research and patient user group forums.

In the BeeFree project, June has helped with the repository, was a part of the Community of Practice sessions and engaged with patients and PEIR volunteers to gain their input, comments and views about the content and presentation of this project.

I recently retired from my career in the NHS, initially as a secretary in Clinical Psychology and a few years later becoming a PALS officer. In 2007 I made the radical decision to study full time for a degree in Philosophy and Ethics which I funded by working as a weekend call handler for the GP Out of hours service. This allowed me to study and maintain my role as NHS employee until I retired in 2020. I graduated in 2010 and began attending as a lay member on Research Ethics committees at Keele and Staffordshire Universities. Whilst enjoying my lay member duties I still had free time during the week so I became a volunteer at the patient information centre (PIER) at the Haywood Hospital where I learned about the LINK group at Keele University. I applied and became a member which encouraged my ongoing PPIE involvement and my contribution to promoting patient and public presence throughout the research journey.

“It is key for the involvement of service users and carers in Trust activities to be meaningful and that as a result, the Trust is able to demonstrate tangible impact as a direct result”.

Working in partnership with Clinicians, the Impact Accelerator Unit at Keele University, MIND and together with service users, carers and volunteers for the past12 months has been truly inspirational.

The project aim was to work on an idea to improve our understanding of those with mental health problems and persistent back and neck pain.   We held a Community of Practice which helped us to understand the problems and co-create solutions which were captured from patient experience of our services.  One of the ‘pinch points’ identified was – “what is available to me after my appointment?” Therefore our co-created solution was a Repository of Community Services which could in turn transfer onto an online offering.

In true co-production style we started with a blank canvas looking at the local support groups available which then quickly progressed to frame our repository around The 5 steps to wellbeing; to talk about problems, be active, be creative, eat well and sleep well.  Little did we know that in March 2020 change would be ahead with the pandemic.

However, along the way we have adapted to change and have supported each other through this really difficult time. Building upon relationships to finding new friends. Growing in confidence, learning, leading which truly demonstrates our commitment to living our values.

Dr Susan Roberts is a Public Health Speciality Registrar and has been working in public health for almost 10 years now. She has worked for councils, the NHS, Public Health England and the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence. She has also taught public health to future doctors at Keele Medical School. She originally trained as a general practitioner and worked in general practice until 2017. This experience led to her passion for promoting wellbeing and preventing ill health through proactive, systematic, evidence-based and collaborative approaches. As a public health specialist, Susan has a particular interest in the interactions between physical, mental wellbeing and social wellbeing and is delighted to be involved in the BeeFree project.

My name is Jason McDonald. I am a Senior Cognitive Behavioural Therapist in a North Staffordshire NHS ‘talking therapies’ service (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies). My specific clinical and research interests focus on the provision of talking therapies for people living with both physical health problems and anxiety and/or depression.

My clinical background is in mental health. I joined the NHS as a mental health nurse in 2001 and worked in a variety of clinical settings until 2005. I subsequently trained as a cognitive behavioural therapist and since 2007 I have worked in talking therapies services treating a range of anxiety problems, depression, with and without long-term physical health difficulties. I am currently in the final stages of completing my research Doctorate which has focused on the role of psychological therapies for people with physical and mental health difficulties.

Jessica is a Senior Research Assistant in the academic department. Jessica is also Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement lead for research. Jessica graduated with a BSc Psychology Counselling and Therapies from the University of Bedfordshire in 2016 and went on to complete a MSc Psychology in Clinical Practice at Nottingham Trent University in 2017. Jessica has since worked in forensic services as psychosocial substance misuse practitioner and an assistant psychologist. Jessica’s research interest is in severe and enduring mental health difficulties, and is hoping to complete the Doctorate of Clinical Psychology in the future. Jessica is currently a senior research assistant in the academic research department at MPFT. Jessica works closely with Professor Saeed Farooq in his various areas of research, including in Global mental health issues, and treatment of schizophrenia in Low and Middle Income Countries.

I am a Research User Group member at Keele University Medical School, in addition my role as a service user working with students and staff alike, in the learning and teaching environment of universities, within healthcare courses.

It was great to be invited to be part of this project as it is the first involvement I’ve had in healthcare animation.

There were so many things I enjoyed, been part of the project, the team was so welcoming and warm, no question or comment was ignored, the inclusivity was heart-warming as sometimes you can get lost amongst the technical and complexities of the project.

The communication was great and time was given to process developments, which was really helpful for me as I have a long term condition that hinders my cognitive function and memory.

I am so grateful to have been part of this project, I learnt so much about the message and the messengers !(Bees)

I’m David, I qualified as a Physiotherapist in 2006. Since then the majority of my working career has been in either Mental Health or Older Adult services. I am very passionate about the impact that a person’s physical health has on their mental wellbeing and how one impacts upon the other.

It has been an absolute pleasure to have been a part of this exciting journey and contributing to the development of the BeeFree campaign over the past 12 months. It has been great collaborating with a variety of different professionals from different backgrounds – sharing thoughts and ideas about this project. I hope that many service users, families, friends and fellow clinicians find the BeeFree resources helpful and that it can contribute in a small way to their recovery.

Hi, I’m Jess, I’ve worked as an inpatient physio in a mental health setting for 5 years now. Watching the BeeFree project come together has been a really interesting and exciting process and something I’ve not been a part of before. I’m looking forward to seeing the positive impact it will have on not only our patients (many of whom suffer from chronic pain alongside their mental health conditions) but also the wider population – I think there is great potential for anyone who sees the project to find benefit from it!”

Jane Hall has been working with Keele University for over 2 years giving the patient/public perspective to research and implementation projects, mainly in the areas of musculoskeletal and mental health.  She has a long history of back pain which, 3 years ago, resulted in her early retirement from the Police Force.  “I feel it is essential to take personal responsibility for managing my health and well-being on a daily basis.  In doing so, I can continue to do the things in life that I enjoy, which includes gardening, yoga/Pilates and up-cycling furniture.”

Mike is a member of the Research User Group (RUG) and Lay Involvement in Knowledge Mobilisation group (LINK), in the Impact Accelerator Unit, Keele University. He has recently been appointed as the first Physical Health Peer Support Worker in the Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. Other roles include; a lay contributor to the School of Medicine research committee; Public Contributor to the Applied Research Collaboration – West Midlands (ARC-WM) long term illness theme; Member of the Haywood Foundation at the Haywood Hospital, Burslem where Mike is a service user and has been for over a decade.

Retired for 10 years, Mike’s professional background is in Research and Development in an industrial chemistry arena and has been owner and Managing Director of a Leadership & Management development company as well as Managing Director of a Marketing & Business Development business.

Greg Bicker is an Advanced Physio Practitioner working in the Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust’s North Staffordshire Musculoskeletal Interface Service, at the Haywood Hospital Rheumatology centre, recognised by the Kings Fund as an exemplar for musculoskeletal and rheumatological care. As part of his role, Greg works as a First Contact Physiotherapy Practitioner, embedded within a local Primary care network and is involved in development and provision of first contact training. Greg’s previous experience is primarily in NHS Orthopaedics, notably providing leadership during the integration in orthopaedic services between University Hospital of North Staffordshire and the now dissolved Mid Staffordshire NHS foundation trust. Alongside his clinical duties, Greg has a key role in delivering undergraduate and masters level teaching around musculoskeletal assessment and management in rheumatology for Keele University, from where he graduated in 2009.