Community Representatives’ Involvement in Clinical and Translational Science Awardee Activities

• DOI: 10.1111/cts.12072
• Publication Date: 2013-06-10T15:57:52Z
• Authors: Consuelo H. Wilkins; Mark Spofford; Neely Williams; Corliss McKeever; Shauntice Allen; Jen Brown; Jennifer Opp; Alan Richmond; A. Hal Strelnick
• Keywords: Translational Research, Biomedical; Community-Based Participatory Research; Leadership; 03 medical and health sciences; Time Factors; 0302 clinical medicine; 4. Education; Awards and Prizes; Humans; Research Articles; Qualitative Research

AbstractObjectivesTo understand the formal roles of community representatives (CRs) in Clinical and Translational Science Awardee (CTSA) activities, to evaluate the extent of integration into the organizational and governance structures and to identify barriers to effective integration.MethodsThe inventory tool was distributed to each of the 60 CTSAs using a secure web application.ResultsForty‐seven (78%) completed the inventory. The mean number of CRs per CTSA is 21.4 (SD: 14.8). Most CTSAs had community advisory boards (89%) and 94% included CRs in Community Engagement (CE) cores. Only 11% reported a CR being a member of the CTSA leadership team and 19% reported that CRs advise core programs beyond CE.CRs are compensated by 79% of CTSAs. Mean annual compensation is $753 (median: $400). Compensation directly correlated with the number of hours that CRs worked in CTSA activities (r = 0.64; P = 0.001).ConclusionsThis inventory allows CTSAs to better understand how CRs have engaged in activities and brings attention to the limited representation among cores and in leadership roles. CTSAs should, with substantive input from CRs, develop strategies to provide the resources and compensation necessary to better integrate the community in CTSA activities and fully realize the goals of the CTSA vision.