Nursing research is undergoing a profound shift. Citizen Science, the approach that actively involves citizens and patients in the scientific process, is gaining ground in healthcare worldwide. A study conducted by the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), with contributions from WHO researchers, found that this participatory model can support the monitoring of 83% of health and well-being indicators linked to the Sustainable Development Goals. A systematic review of 142 studies published in BMC Health Services Research showed that direct patient involvement in research improves study design quality, outcome relevance and trial participation rates.
Yet the specific application of Citizen Science to nursing remains largely uncharted. A 2024 systematic review identified just 13 Citizen Science studies conducted in the nursing field, all published between 2017 and 2023. This is precisely the gap that a team at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University (UniSR) set out to address. A study published in the International Journal of Nursing Studies, Systematic review on the frequency and quality of reporting patient and public involvement in patient safety research, explores how nursing research can drive a new model of scientific production grounded in the active participation of patients, caregivers and communities — combining methodological rigour with openness to society.
The study’s scientific quality and methodological innovation earned the SISI Award 2025, granted by the Italian Society of Nursing Sciences (Società Italiana di Scienze Infermieristiche) for the best research contribution in the field.
Nurses work at the intersection of clinical expertise, trusted relationships with patients and first-hand knowledge of everyday care experiences. This position allows nursing research to move beyond traditional models of knowledge production, fostering the co-creation of evidence together with patients and communities, from shaping research questions to interpreting results.
Giulia Villa, researcher in nursing sciences and lead author of the study, explains: «Nursing research has a long tradition of integrating qualitative methods, patient narratives and holistic perspectives. Citizen Science develops naturally from this foundation, offering new tools to strengthen inclusivity, relevance and real-world impact.»
Villa’s study outlines how Citizen Science can strengthen nursing research on several fronts: improving treatment adherence, enhancing patient self-care skills, supporting adaptation to chronic conditions and increasing trust in science and healthcare systems. When designed according to rigorous methodological and ethical standards, participatory research can generate robust data while ensuring that outcomes align with the real needs of people and communities.
The work is part of UniSR’s broader engagement with Citizen Science in healthcare, within the Open Science and Responsible Research and Innovation frameworks supported by the Research Development Area (ReDe).
A distinctive feature of this study is highlighted by Roberto Buccione, director of the Research Development Area (ReDe), who comments: «The natural collaboration between researchers and research support staff in this work reflects our institutional culture, where diverse professional competencies contribute to generating new knowledge.»
Maya Fedeli, last author of the paper and Citizen Science lead at ReDe, adds: «The experience developed at UniSR in participatory research shows that openness, inclusion and methodological rigour can coexist and reinforce each other.»
The capacity to conduct research in nursing is built across the entire educational pathway. At UniSR, this ranges from the Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing to the Master’s Degree in Nursing and Midwifery Sciences, through to the Advanced Training Programme for Clinical Research Nurses and Midwives — a program that trains professionals to bring clinical practice into the scientific process.
The Nursing Research and Innovation Centre (CeNRI), directed by Prof. Duilio Fiorenzo Manara, is where education and research converge. More broadly, the model proposed by the study reflects a vision of science as a shared, participatory process — one where patients and citizens are not merely research subjects but active contributors. An approach to nursing research that encourages the continuous development of models promoting transparency, collaboration and mutual learning between academia and society.