Patient and carer network (PCN)

The Patient and Carer Network (PCN) is a network of volunteers in England and Wales who support and shape the work of the Royal College of Physicians.

Sam 2

'[The PCN] is a great opportunity to learn, share and highlight the lived experience and collective knowledge of patients and carers.'

Sam Mauger

Patient and Carer Network (PCN) chair

We help to redesign health care

We work with diverse teams of healthcare professionals to improve health outcomes. The Modern Ward Rounds guidance describes how care can be delivered in hospital in partnership with patients, families and carers.

Read the report
Ward Rounds (1)

We strive to make healthcare safer

We use our lived experience to work with clinicians to create useful resources like the medicine safety checklist.

Download the checklist
Care Collage (1)

We want to make experiences better

We help to improve difficult conversations. In our work on the Talking about Dying report, we held an online focus group to bring members together to share their personal experiences of talking about dying. This fed into the development and revision of guidance that helps clinicians to talk to their patients and families in an honest, timely and sensitive manner.

Talking About Dying

We support and influence the work of the RCP

The PCN is a key partner in the work of RCP specialty committees, boards and working groups. We sit on RCP journal editorial boards and contribute to Commentary magazine.

As representatives, we are able to influence and provide the patient perspective to groups of specialist clinicians, highlighting why patient and carer expertise is important and how it can be better utilised.

PCN Image

Become a member

Everyone is a patient at some point in their lives. Many people become carers. Health does not discriminate. For this reason, anyone, regardless of their background, the amount of time they can give or how they want to engage, can be a member of the Patient and Carer Network. We want people to join who are passionate about improving healthcare for all.

Join the PCN
Patient And Visitor