Reflections from the Citizen-Led Research Workshop at the Institute of Palliative Medicine, Kozhikode
What if research does not belong to universities alone?
What if research belongs to ordinary people?
At the Institute of Palliative Medicine, Kozhikode, we recently completed a three-day workshop on research skills, facilitated by Dr. Jairam K. Ramakrishnan, Public Health Consultant of IPM. The participants were entirely community members ; not academics or career researchers, but committed citizens: school teachers, homemakers, retired professionals, young students, social workers, and volunteers.
The core idea was simple, yet quietly radical:
Research is not a luxury.
It is not the business of high-end academicians alone.
It is not an unreachable fruit.
With the right orientation, methodological clarity, and ethical guidance, community members can ask meaningful questions, design small but robust studies, collect data responsibly, and generate knowledge that truly matters.
Challenging the Myth
For many participants, “research” had always been a frightening word — associated with statistics, complicated language, and distant institutions.
We deliberately dismantled that fear.
- No intimidating jargon.
- No ivory-tower distance.
- No obsession with big grants.
Instead, we began with everyday curiosity.
Is the practical and legal knowledge around death and dying sufficient in our society to support healthy bereavement?
How does volunteering affect young people’s understanding of death?
What does “quality of death” mean to patients and caregivers in our own neighbourhoods?
One of the most powerful examples discussed was a zero-budget community study on the quality of death among palliative care patients in Calicut — conducted by volunteers, and soon to be published. Zero funding. No complex infrastructure. Just clarity of purpose and disciplined inquiry.
Over three days, participants:
- Explored research philosophy in simple, accessible language
- Broke down methodology into practical, manageable steps
- Worked in groups to identify locally relevant research questions
- Began shaping feasible, community-rooted projects
What emerged was not merely research design but ownership.
When Knowledge Shifts Hands
Something subtle happens when so-called “ordinary people” realise they can generate knowledge — not just consume it.
Research stops being a performance for journals.
It becomes a tool for justice.
A mirror for community realities.
A language for unheard experiences.
If we truly believe in community-led health, compassionate communities, and participatory models of care, then knowledge creation cannot remain centralised.
Democratising care without democratising knowledge is incomplete.
Perhaps the real question is not whether communities can do research.
Perhaps the question is:
Why have we allowed research to feel inaccessible for so long?
Who benefits when knowledge feels distant?
And who benefits when it becomes shared?
Emerging Ideas from the Community
The range of ideas generated during the workshop was remarkable:
- Understanding grief experiences in neighbourhood networks
- The role of young volunteers in strengthening care
- The relational effects of caregiving on families
- Community perceptions of companionship
Not all ideas may mature into full studies. But some certainly will — with proper mentorship and guidance. And that itself is a good beginning.
Because the real transformation is not only in the projects that get published.
It is in the mindset that shifts.
Voices from Participants
“I always thought research was the forte of medical professionals and academics. Now I realise that anyone, with the right guidance, can conduct research on issues relevant to their own community.”
“During my academic days, research was a nightmare. It was taught as something highly complex and impossible to crack. I wish our teachers had taken the approach used in this workshop. We learned about research concepts, myths, methodology, and tools through everyday examples. For the first time, research felt human.”
These reflections reveal something deeper than skill acquisition. They reveal liberation from intellectual hierarchy.
A Gentle Provocation
If research is meant to generate knowledge that improves human lives, then excluding communities from that process is not merely inefficient — it is unjust.
Community-led palliative care has already transformed how we think about service delivery.
Could community-led research transform how we think about knowledge itself?
The workshop may have lasted three days.
But its real work has just begun.
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Authors
Saif Mohammed – saifsabil@gmail.com
Suhas Nambath
This is a great article and real progress in our thinking about research and the genuine involvement of citizens in its generation and application. This workshop is part of a social change programme that the IPM, UCL and St Christopher’s Hospice are working on together. The way that Jairam and colleagues have melded research, knowledge generation, social action and related change is inspiring. Its focus on drawing on the expertise of community members is very helpful as a way forward. More please!
Thank you so much for highlighting this – it’s a really helpful article and I’m delighted it has wide dissemination. The real challenge is translating results of such research into practice and it looks like you have plans to make this happen.
Many congratulations