TY - JOUR AB - Exploring a brief history of patient and public involvement as a pathway to the present, the article considers whether we are close to achieving a system of public engagement in health and social care that can be truly held to account as enabling people to influence the decisions that affect their lives. Considering the most recent legislation and in particular local involvement networks the article looks more closely at ‘quality’ in public involvement and focuses on how we can work together through personal responsibility to achieve it. VL - 4 IS - 2 SN - 1747-9886 DO - 10.1108/17479886200800020 UR - https://doi.org/10.1108/17479886200800020 AU - Cunnett Jessie PY - 2008 Y1 - 2008/01/01 TI - Putting People at the Heart of Public Services: Can We Make it a Reality this Time? T2 - International Journal of Leadership in Public Services PB - Emerald Group Publishing Limited SP - 15 EP - 21 Y2 - 2024/04/25 ER -