Lay Summaries for Research Articles: A Citizen Science Approach to Bridge the Gap in Access

The Patients Participate! project explored the feasibility of a citizen science approach to writing lay summaries for research articles. It involved a range stakeholders: funders of research (medical charities), service providers (the British Library), researchers and patients. Informed by practices within medical charities and the experiences of other citizen science projects, different methods were used to investigate trust, the skills required to produce a good lay summary, and the benefits of citizen science. A literature review into human factors was carried out and platforms for service delivery were analysed. The project was able to synthesise guidelines on participation in citizen science projects and the writing of lay summaries, and to identify challenges. This paper summarises the outcomes and lessons learned.