Engagement With Professional Stakeholders in Healthcare Research—The Case of the Dementia PersonAlised Care Team (D-PACT) Project in the United Kingdom

Introduction: In this viewpoint we highlight a gap in the literature relating to the involvement of professional stakeholders in healthcare evaluation research. Method: Using the Dementia—PersonAlised Care Team (D-PACT) project as an example, we illustrate how professional stakeholder work can serve various functions, from understanding commissioning and policy context to contributing to detail of intervention components. Outcome: We argue that identifying these project-specific functions can help researchers to effectively plan when, how and for whom they will engage in professional stakeholder work across the course of an evaluation. In addition, we call for further evidence-based guidance and sufficient allocation of resources (provided by those funding research projects) to support effective stakeholder work. Conclusion: Such support will not only enhance evaluation findings but also promote continued learning on best practice for professional stakeholder work. Patient or Public Contribution: Public and patient involvement contributors were involved in the main D-PACT study design, development of data collection tools and interpretation of study findings.