Citizens' Panel
Since November 2016, our Citizens' Panel has brought together people across Scotland to inform and influence key decisions about health and social care policy and services.
A citizens' panel is a large, demographically-representative group of citizens which helps to assess public preferences and opinions. This is the first time a national citizens' panel focusing on health and social care issues has been established in Scotland.
Our Citizens' Panel was developed at a size that will allow statistically robust analysis of the views of its members at a Scotland-wide level, roughly 1,300 people from across all 32 local authority areas. Panel members were selected at random from the electoral register or recruited to be broadly representative of the Scottish population by gender, age, employment status, housing tenure, ethnic origin and geographic location. More information about how members were recruited can be found in the Citizens' Panel recruitment report.
Panel members share their opinions using self-complete electronic or postal surveys or through telephone interviews.
We work with a range of organisations to develop questions for the Panel, including Scottish Government and the third sector, and report on how they use the findings from the Panel to inform their work.
Seventh Panel Report
Health and social care experience during the COVID-19 pandemic and priorities for health and social care in the future (March 2021)
Find out moreSixth Panel Report
Awareness of antibiotic resistance, appropriate use of antibiotics and related public health campaigns (September 2020)
Find out moreFifth Panel Report
Scottish Ambulance Service, organ and tissue donation after death, and care provided by nurses and midwives (October 2019)
Find out moreFourth Panel Report
HIV awareness, mental health and wellbeing and inclusive communication (May 2018)
Find out moreThird Panel Report
Digital technology for healthcare improvement, use of personal health and social care information, and access to healthcare professionals other than doctors (January 2018)
Find out moreSecond Panel Report
Relationships with health and social care professionals, shared decision making, loneliness in Scotland, and how well local services are working (August 2017)
Find out moreFirst Panel Report
Social care support, pharmacy services and the use of medicines, and improving oral health (March 2017)
Find out moreFrequently Asked Questions
Can I join the Panel?
No. Panel members have been selected at random from the electoral register or recruited to be broadly representative of the Scottish population by gender, age, employment status, housing tenure, ethnic origin and geographic location.
What will Panel members do?
Panel members are sent a questionnaire to complete roughly three times a year. The questionnaire can be electronic or on paper, or completed over the phone.
What topics has the Panel looked at?
To date, Panel members have given feedback on a wide range of issues including Health Literacy, Pharmacy, Oral Health, Digital Healthcare, Loneliness, Realistic Medicine, HIV awareness and Inclusive Communications.
What do you do with Panel responses?
Panel members will get feedback about any surveys or other engagement activities that they take part in, and also about what impact or influence their participation has had. After each survey we produce a report about what we found out.
Can you separate the data to identify the views of people living in my local area?
The Panel is constructed to provide robust findings at a national level only. Any findings at local level would not be statistically robust so we do not separate the data in this way.
How do I submit a topic for the Panel to consider?
To submit a topic for Panel consideration, you or your organisation must complete a Panel Topic Submission Template. You can request one of these from wendy.brown@scottishhealthcouncil.org. Each submitted topic is carefully assessed to ensure that the topic aligns with Scottish health and care strategy and policy; that the Panel is the most appropriate method; and that there will be demonstrable practical use of the findings.