Within the ECORRA Program, Sharina Riva’s PhD will establish a framework for best practice co-design in health services research
There is an increasing expectation that co-design methods should be used in health services research to design more relevant and feasible initiatives, yet there remains limited clarity about what constitutes high-quality co-design in real-life practice.
Sharina’s PhD meets a growing need to move beyond this rhetorical support for co-design, and will strengthen the evidence base around how to implement, evaluate, and report co-design in real-world health services research settings.
“Co-design can help meet our ethical responsibility for research to be relevant to the communities and people that they target; my research will help this be done in a more consistent and meaningful way” says Sharina.
Commencing in 2026, her PhD will be implemented across four studies: systematic review of co-design frameworks and best practice principles, observational study of co-design practice in health services research, qualitative study on experiences of the co-design process, Delphi study on best-practice co-design.
About Sharina
Sharina is an Associate Research Fellow within the ECORRA Program. Since joining in 2022, her work has supported multiple projects across the ECORRA program, contributing to the development of evidence to inform more equitable and effective health service delivery.
Sharina is also a registered psychologist, and her background working in private practice underpins her interest in patient-centred care and the broader application of health services research. She is particularly interested in how research can inform meaningful improvements in healthcare systems and patient experiences.
Making Co-Design Matter
The involvement of consumer representatives has been recognised as essential in health services research. The underlying premise of co-design is that lived experience constitutes an essential form of expertise, and is invaluable in shaping more acceptable, effective, and contextually relevant solutions, improving research credibility, relevance, and transparency.
Within healthcare, co-design has gained increasing prominence; especially with a responsibility to involve consumers. However, even though frameworks may be cited, many studies provide limited detail on methods of facilitation, decision-making processes, and how power is shared between health care professionals, researchers, and consumers.
Sharina’s PhD will have a specific focus on how co-design is facilitated, reported, and evaluated in health services research. Working alongside several ECORRA Program projects, Sharina will explore co-design participant equity, including in the rural and remote health service setting.
