The “Science” of Community Engagement: Using a public health institute to increase effectiveness of translational research through an innovative community and academic partnership Sara E. Miller ; Montelle M. Tamez 1
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Colorado Foundation for Public Health and the Environment, Denver, CO;
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University of Colorado Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, Aurora, CO PARTNERS
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N C I U L O C | T 9 COMMUN S t a te
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- Lack of communication. - Research was not trusted. - Communities were being asked to give a lot and were receiving no incentives. - Lack of a sustainable forum for bi-directional, equitable exchange of ideas and information. - Many small organizations did not have financial capacity to engage in cost-reimbursement activities. - Contracting was a slow, cumbersome process and difficult to understand. - Lack of understanding of federal awards and compliance issues.
- Makes funds available for community engagement and research.
Colorado Foundation for Public Health & the Environment (CFPHE) - Helped structure the PACT partnership. - Is the point of contact for community participants. - Acts as an administrative and fiscal agent/ intermediary between university and community partners.
- Brings together established communityacademic artnerships into a sustainable collaborative group for bidirectional exchange.
- Provides a mechanism for rapid response to funding opportunities.
- Develops and disperses innovative, state-of-the-art methodologies in the community research setting.
- Neutral party to house funds for community/ academic projects. - Enhances community capacity to navigate the administrative and institutional requirements of working with a large university.
- Engages care providers and lay members of diverse communities in developing a research agenda.
University
- Makes targeted investments in commmunity engagement and translational research.
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- Communities were being asked to engage without any coordination.
- Integrates and transforms existing community and academic partnerships into a collaborative, broad-based translational research enterprise to enhance public trust and reduce health disparities.
- Develops programs to improve relationships and build trust between academicians and communities.
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Barriers preventing community organizations from becoming true research partners:
- Created in 2008 with funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
- Accelerates the translation of research discoveries into improved patient care and public health.
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Community Liaisons
Partnership of Academicians & Communities for Translation (PACT)
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Community Liaisons
Colorado Clinical & Translational Sciences Institute Community Engagement Core
- A collaborative enterprise with University of Colorado Denver, University of Colorado at Boulder, six affiliated Hospitals and multiple community organizations.
| Colorado Area Health E d m e nt u c a t i o
Urban Denver Latino/a Community (LUCHAR)
BARRIERS What wasn’t working in the Research Enterprise...
iron Community Liaisons
Rural Southwestern Colorado/ San Luis Valley (RMPRC)
Kaiser Permanente CO Patient/ Provider Population
Community Liaisons
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Aurora /Anschutz Medical Campus Surrounding Neighborhoods (Stapleton 2040)
O C U T N C C A P IT Y M EMB E R S I
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( S s N r e O C A P) n t r a P & es
Rural Eastern Colorado (High Plains Research Network)
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American Indian/ Alaska Native Community
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Objective 3: Demonstrate how community based organizations can contribute to creating innovative models for successful community-academic partnerships.
Urban African American Community (Center for African American Health)
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Community Liaisons
PAC T L | 9 AC A D C O
Objective 2: Describe how novel fiscal and administrative arragements between universities and community based organizations can enhance community participation in translational research.
Community Liaisons
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The Partnership for Academicians and Communities in Translation is transforming the way communities and researchers work together to design and conduct research by building bridges between health research, clinical practice and community health initiatives to improve the health of the people of Colorado and the Rocky Mountain Region.
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Objective 1: Describe how Colorado’s innovative partnerships have enhanced community engagement activities in translational research and improved community participation and representation in the research enterprise.
Community Liaisons
Community Liaisons
Asian American, Pacific Islander and Immigrant Refugee Community
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The past 10 years have seen a strong emergence of academic-community partnerships as an approach to conducting participatory and translational research. While this approach brings new opportunities for generating and exchanging knowledge, it also raises new social, ethical and administrative challenges. Addressing and surmounting these challenges is critical for transforming community-academic partnerships into sustained enterprises that ultimately address health concerns at the community level. Colorado has developed a unique solution to these obstacles, involving a flourishing partnership with a local public health institute and community-based organizations. This poster describes the process of establishing partnerships and systems to facilitate meaningful community representation and participation including: shared governance, innovative fiscal structures, and others.
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BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES
ff | Colorado Fou a t S n o i t a n
CFPHE
- Assists community members in their efforts to promote and conduct translational research activities. - “Hires” community members to work with the university on various projects.
CCTSI
The CCTSI Community Engagement Core contracts with CFPHE to support community engaged research activities. We work together to co-manage the funds.
The University of Colorado CCTSI receives funding from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
CFPHE funnels grant funds from the university into the community to support research activities, research infrastructure, professional development and community engagement activities.
Partnership Formation
Elements identified as being important to the formation of the partnership.
80%
Shared Mission, Vision & Goals
2010 PARTNERSHIP ASSESSMENT
60%
Struggle to find funding
In March 2010, the Partnership of Academicians Unclear roles and Communities for Translation (PACT) Council’s Executive Committee commissioned the Colorado Commitment to diversity Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CCTSI) evaluation team to provide an assessment of the Function Council as a partnership. The assessment explored Partnership Elements identified as being important to the functioning of the partnership. three main facets of partnership development:1) the Dedicated time formation of the partnership; 2) the functioning of the partnership; and 3) the establishment of a sense of cultural safety and humility among partners. Shared leadership/decision-making The following were identified as areas to focus work: • Establish mechanisms to keep all members engaged. • Enhance integration and coordination between work groups. • Create stronger accountability for all participants. • Continue to address issues of race and class.
SOLUTIONS
40%
Colorado has developed a unique solution to address barriers to community participation in the research enterprise, involving an innovative partnership with the Colorado Foundation for Public Health and Environment (CFPHE), a nonprofit 501 (c) (3) corporation and one of Colorado’s Public Health Institutes. The CCTSI and CFPHE have established administrative systems that allow meaningful community representation and participation in the research enterprise while eliminating the previously perceived “red tape” that often accompanies contractual relationships in an institutional bureaucracy such as the University.
33%
90% 80% 62%
Effective conflict management
CFPHE serves as an administrative liaison between the university and community to create efficiencies in the distribution of funding and other resources to community based partners and to improve responsiveness to community administrative needs. Additionally, the CFPHE Executive Director is a member of the CCTSI Community Engagement Core Staff and ensures that the community perspective is represented in all facets of our program.
Cultural Safety & Humility
Elements identified as being important to the development of cultural safety and humility within the partnership.
62%
Working on barriers to trust Inequity in risks and rewards
50%
Adequate time to reflect
50% 10%
100%
Community Research Activities
Community Research Infrustructure
Community Research Dissemination Activities
Community-based PACT Council Members Community Pilot Grants
Community Liaisons
Education and Training
Community Research Participants
Community Research Infrastructure
Community Events
TOOLS We developed and implemented a series of tools to support effective and efficient community engagement: · Community contracts snd MOU’s · Personnel solutions · Data sharing guidelines · Administrative and grants management training · Systematic co-management of funding streams · Document management solutions · General technical assistance · Web-based toolkit: www.co-PACT.org