Table 1 Co-design workshop activities
Co-design Workshop 1 | |
ACTIVITY/TASK | PURPOSE/AIM |
Introductions and icebreaker | Serve as a “Why are we here?” and establish mutual expectations |
Write/draw a word(s) or picture(s) to summarise: “If you were taking part in our future weight loss intervention, how you would like to feel at the end of the intervention?” | |
Feedback from focus groups and ranking exercise | Present back to participants the main concerns and challenges identified in the focus groups—in the context of what type of support is needed to address them |
Which physical and psychological side effects have the greatest impact on you being physically active or sticking to a healthy diet/changing your diet? Rank the five most important challenges identified in stage 1 | |
Factors influencing health behaviour change | Continue to progress thinking and conversations regarding what components the intervention needs to include. Identify potential behaviour change strategies that will be helpful and effective from participants’ perspective. NB: The value of these ranking exercises is in the discussion they generate. Facilitators use opportunities to ask “why” people are ranking things higher or lower and explore differences of opinion. All this contributes to an increasingly nuanced understanding about what might work, why and for whom, and where variation/flexibility is needed to suit different people |
Which behaviour change techniques would help you to engage with a supportive intervention/keep you involved? Discussion and ranking exercises in the context of side-effects and challenges identified in the focus groups, plus discussion of behaviour change techniques identified by research team | |
Picture/image association | Provides a steer on the images/words that resonate with this population – informs design briefs for intervention materials; ensures conversations are light-hearted so as to not dwell on negatives of the breast cancer experience |
Display keywords and images associated with the study aims (e.g. breast cancer, weight loss, success, achievement, support) and ask participants to discuss how these words and images make them feel | |
“How Might We…?” flipchart questions | “How might we…?” statements on flipcharts around the room are designed to reframe problems as opportunities and to encourage focused solutions without limiting creativity. Sticky note ideas/suggestions as the basis for group brainstorming/discussion to generate solutions/opportunities Statements based on issues identified in stage 1, earlier ranking exercises and evidence for effective behaviour change strategies from the literature. Flipcharts retained for analysis prior to co-design workshop 2 |
HMW make it easier for you to attend the programme on days/weeks when you feel unwell/low? HMW convince you that the programme is worth taking part in? HMW help you to feel less self-conscious during physical activity sessions? HMW provide you with diet information and advice that is clear to understand but also allows you to have some choice and flexibility? HMW make it as easy as possible for you to attend or complete all the sessions of the programme? HMW ensure the programme provides social support? HMW make the programme fun? HMW help you to keep on track with your diet in between group sessions? HMW link parts of the programme to the side-effects of breast cancer you have told us are most troublesome? | |
Co-design Workshop 2 | |
ACTIVITY/TASK | PURPOSE/AIM |
Group discussion—unanswered questions from workshop 1 | Generate discussion to gather more information on how/why to include specific intervention components. Explore the implications of making certain features of the intervention ‘opt-in’ or ‘opt-out’ |
e.g. How important is it that intervention support groups are homogenous (i.e. women of the same age, with similar experiences, issues and concerns, etc.)? Should there be optional elements to a weight loss intervention (i.e. setting-up social media support groups, socialising after support sessions, weekly group/individual goals, etc.)? How (and how frequently) should progress be tracked? Practical questions (e.g. venue for support sessions, timing, etc.) | |
Prototyping stations | Discussion and further refinement of resource prototypes to finalise what these should look like; consider how resources should be used in the intervention and discount any that become apparent as less useful or less desirable |
As a group, move around three workstations set-up with templates, examples and very rough prototypes of intervention resources/printed support materials based on ideas and proposed solutions generated in co-design workshop 1. These were created/provided by the facilitators and/or brought in by participants as useful examples of what could work best (e.g. diaries containing recipes, goal setting templates, etc.). Discussions were clustered around three core themes: information sources and intervention materials; progress tracking and monitoring; maintaining motivation and support | |
Ask the Physiologist | From Workshop 1, it was clear that participants want the intervention to be underpinned by best available evidence. They wanted better knowledge and understanding of the physiological mechanisms underpinning their cancer treatment, bodily changes and symptoms, and the importance of a healthy diet and physical activity in this context. Provides valuable insight into the topics needing to be covered in support sessions and intervention materials |
The group participates in a question & answer session with an exercise physiologist who has experience of leading exercise and dietary intervention trials with cancer patients | |
Introduction to proposed intervention structure | Group discussion to refine and update the intervention delivery model and consider what will work best and why. Gather views/ideas on delivery/receipt of the intervention to maximise interest and participation |
A diagram presented by the research team to outline a proposed intervention delivery model, based on discussions in co-design workshops 1 and 2 and best evidence from the literature (e.g. frequency of support sessions, duration of the intervention, touchpoints for enhanced support, etc.) | |