Development and evaluation of a community-engaged research training program: Building capacity of Marshallese stakeholders and academic researchers to conduct health research

Main Article Content

Pearl A McElfish
Brett Rowland
Britni L Ayers
Gail E O'Connor
Rachel S Purvis
Nia Aitaoto
Lucy Capelle
Melisa Laelan
Holly C Felix
M Kathryn Stewart
Karen HK Yeary

Abstract

Pacific Islanders are a growing, yet understudied population who suffer from high rates of chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes. Given the historical trauma experienced by Pacific Islanders, community-based participatory research (CBPR) is an appropriate way to conduct research focused on reducing the health disparities observed in this population. This paper presents the process of engaging the Marshallese community to design, conduct, and evaluate a community-engaged research training program. The goal of the program was to build the capacity of both academic researchers and community stakeholders to conduct CBPR for the purpose of addressing health disparities identified and prioritized by the Marshallese community. The program included both didactic training and experiential mentored research components delivered over a period of two years. Eleven Marshallese community stakeholders and eleven academic researchers participated in the program. Results indicated that the program successfully increased participants’ knowledge regarding the CBPR process. Groups of participants have completed exploratory research projects based on the topics identified by the community. The evaluation adds important insights to the current CBPR training literature and can inform future CBPR trainings.


Keywords
community-based participatory research, community-engaged research, Pacific Islanders, minority health, health disparities, interprofessional training

Article Details

Section
Practice-based articles (Non-refereed)
Author Biographies

Pearl A McElfish, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Northwest

Director of Research

Brett Rowland, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Northwest

Office of Community Health and Research, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Northwest, 1125 North College Avenue, Fayetteville, AR, USA

Britni L Ayers, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Northwest

College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Northwest, 1125 North College Avenue, Fayetteville, AR, USA

Gail E O'Connor, Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations

Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations, 101 Callan Avenue, Suite 400, San Leandro, CA, USA

Rachel S Purvis, Office of Community Health and Research, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Northwest

Office of Community Health and Research, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Northwest, 1125 North College Avenue, Fayetteville, AR, USA

Nia Aitaoto, Department of Nutrition and Integrative Physiology, College of Health, University of Utah

Department of Nutrition and Integrative Physiology, College of Health, University of Utah, 250 South 1850 East, Salt Lake City, UT, USA

Lucy Capelle, Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese

Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese, 614 East Emma Avenue, Suite 210, Springdale, AR, USA

Melisa Laelan, Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese

Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese, 614 East Emma Avenue, Suite 210, Springdale, AR, USA

Holly C Felix, Fay W Boozman College of Public Health, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Fay W Boozman College of Public Health, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 4301 West Markham Street, Little Rock, AR, USA

M Kathryn Stewart, Fay W Boozman College of Public Health, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Fay W Boozman College of Public Health, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 4301 West Markham Street, Little Rock, AR, USA

Karen HK Yeary, Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 4301 West Markham Street, Little Rock, AR, USA