Community Engagement Toolkit
How do you want to engage the community and patients in your research?
In this Community Engagement Toolkit you will find evidence-based approaches, services and resources to support you in engaging patients and community across all phases of research (design, implementation/ recruitment, dissemination).
Scroll to explore the types of support we offer, learn what's provided by CORE, what your role would be, and see an estimate of the the time that is needed.
Know what you are looking for? Use the boxes below to jump to the area you are most interested in.
Not sure how you'd like to engage patients, community members or partners in your project?
Request a consult or contact us and we can discuss the level and type of involvement that works for you.
I want INPUT FROM a Community
This is a community engaged approach that is includes a 1-2 hour interactive session with a community group. The purpose of this session is to gather information and explore topics with a community organization or population of interest.
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Arrange for 3-12 individuals from a community group or organization to discuss your project or idea
- Provide input on community-friendly materials for session
- Lead or co-lead the conversation/discussion
- Notes from session
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Meet twice to develop goals and materials
- Choose whether you want to attend the 1-2 hour discussion
- 3-4 hours of your time
LEAD TIME:
- 2-4 weeks
Request a consult or contact us about Community Conversations
This is an evidence-based approach (Joosten et al, 2015, 2018) that includes a facilitated 2-hour interactive discussion(s) with your population of interest. The purpose of this structured session is to gather specific input/feedback on your study or idea and incorporate community perspectives to inform and enhance your funding proposal or active study.
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Identify and orient 8-10 participants with characteristics defined by you (e.g., specific demographic, health condition, urban/rural, caregivers)
- Co-develop community-friendly materials and questions
- Trained facilitator leads the session
- Summary feedback report, recommendations and debrief
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Meet 3-4 times to define goals, population of interest, and materials and review summary report
- Attend the 2-hour Engagement Studio with facilitator, present for 10 minutes and respond to questions during the discussion
- 6-8 hours of your time
LEAD TIME:
- 4-6 weeks
Request a consult or contact us about Community Engagement Studios
This is a consultative session(s) with a cancer advocate that has experience working with research teams. The primary role of a research advocate is to represent the collective patient perspective, or the disease experiences of many patients in the research process.
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Identify appropriate Advocate(s) for your needs
- Convene an introductory meeting between Advocate(s) and Research team
- Advocates can provide input on projects ad hoc or ongoing
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Attend an introductory meeting
- Engage your advocate at any stage of your research
- Share proposed drafts and/or other materials
- Seek feedback
- Request a letter of support from the Advocate (optional)
- 2-8 hours of your time
LEAD TIME:
- 4-6 weeks before grant deadline is ideal
Request a consult or contact us about Knight Scientific Research Advocates
I want DATA FROM a Community
Do you need to adapt, test or implement your data collection methods with a particular population or region? Are you interested in discussing strategies about how to include underrepresented populations and/or find a recruitment partner in the community?
This is a service to help you develop survey, interview or other data collection tools with input from your population or region of interest.
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Connect with appropriate community organizations and/or individuals to engage with
- Develop a plan to gather input and manage the process
- Adapt and test tools to include underrepresented populations and other groups
- Survey implementation (if needed)
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Meet with CORE team to discuss survey goals
- Describe population of interest
- 1-5 hours of your time
LEAD TIME:
- 1-2 weeks
Request a consult or contact us about Survey Design & Implementation
This is a community engaged approach to help you collect qualitative data in a group setting for a research question or to gather anonymous opinions, perspectives in or about a region.
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Co-develop goals and focus group questions
- Develop moderator guide
- Recruit focus group participants
- Moderate or attend focus groups
- Record session, provide transcript
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Meet with CORE team to discuss goals, focus group questions and plan for analyses
- Choose whether you want to moderate, attend or have us lead the focus groups
- 5-10 hours of your time
LEAD TIME:
- 4-6 weeks, plus IRB dependencies
Request a consult or contact us about Focus Groups
This is a service that provides qualitative or quantitative data collection for your project.
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Assist in identifying data sources & community partners
- Review & adapt tools to include underrepresented populations/ groups of interest
- Project set-up and implementation
- Community research liaison as a facilitator
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Meet with CORE team to discuss the research question
- Define research metrics
- 5-10 hours of your time
LEAD TIME:
- 4-6 weeks, plus IRB dependencies
Request a consult or contact us about Data Collection
I want DATA ABOUT a Community
Are you interested in finding new or existing data about a particular community and/or collaborating on a project? We can help you find regional data about health disparities, community priorities and assist in building community partnerships.
Engaging and collaborating with community-based organizations and other health care, governmental (public health), education, and business stakeholders can enhance your grant application, inform project design, and extend the reach and impact of your work. A community-based organization is a public or private nonprofit organization with demonstrated effectiveness that is representative of a community or significant segments of a community (e.g., demographic, disease related, region). They typically provide support, education and/or services to individuals in that community.
Types of Community Partners: Federally Qualified Healthcare Clinics (FQHCs), faith-based and cultural organizations, public health departments, social and civic groups, tribal health and leadership, disease focused and advocacy organizations, Pre-K, K-12 schools and higher education, community coalitions that address an issue/health priority, non-OHSU hospitals and clinics, regional Coordinated Care Organizations (CCOs)
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Assist in developing engagement and collaboration strategies that meet your project needs
- Identify appropriate community-based organizations and/or organizations and individuals within our network
- Provide introductions and/or facilitate meetings to develop mutually beneficial opportunities
- Assist in setting expectations and/or developing a partnership agreement and/or scope of work
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Meet with CORE team to discuss your goals and desired level of collaboration
- Engage with community organizations to discuss areas of interest and needs around specific topics and/or research project and explore options for a mutually beneficial collaboration
- Share your research at a community-friendly level
LEAD TIME:
- 4-6 weeks
Request a consult or contact us about Connecting with a Community Partner
The OHSU Community Research Hub and our team of Community Research Liaisons provide community-engaged research expertise and have developed a network of community partners. We can assist with both short-term project needs and with developing long-term community-academic partnerships. Liaisons live and work in their communities and can also share local knowledge (e.g., health disparities, initiatives and priorities and community assets).
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Identify appropriate Liaison(s) for your needs
- Facilitate introductions & meetings and to develop collaborative research opportunities (e.g., letters of support for grant applications, project partnerships, sharing your results)
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Meet with team to discuss your goals and desired level of collaboration
- Engage with liaison and community organizations to discuss areas of interest and needs around specific topics and/or research project and explore options for a mutually beneficial collaboration
- Share your research at a community-friendly level
LEAD TIME:
- 1-2 weeks
Request a consult or contact us about Connecting with a Community Research Liaison
I want to SHARE MY RESEARCH with a Community
Are you interested in sharing your research project results and/or expertise with communities? We can help you develop and test community-friendly materials and find your audience.
This is a consult to help you plan for and share your project results with specific populations and/or organizations. A primary goal of dissemination is to increase awareness within communities to maximize the impact for improving health outcomes.
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Discuss and/or help you develop your plan for disseminating results
- Provide input and/or test community-friendly materials
- Identify and help you connect with appropriate community audiences
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Include a dissemination strategy in your initial project plan
- Develop community-friendly materials
- Meet with community organizations to discuss presentation and other dissemination opportunities
LEAD TIME:
- 4-6 weeks
Request a consult or contact us about Disseminating Results
This is a consult to help you identify and connect with community partners to share your topic expertise, provide training and/or develop project partnerships. Goals include extending the reach of your work, translating your research into meaningful health improvements and building research capacity and expertise in communities.
WHAT'S PROVIDED by us (CORE Team) :
- Identify and connect you with appropriate community organizations and/or individuals to engage with
- Organize and facilitate meetings to understand needs and help establish nature of relationship
- Set expectations and develop scope of work if needed
WHAT'S EXPECTED of you (Research Team):
- Meet with CORE team to discuss interests, areas of expertise, and desired level of collaboration
- Engage with community organizations to discuss areas of interest and needs around specific topics, projects and community priorities
LEAD TIME:
- 2-4 weeks
Request a consult or contact us about Providing Topic Expertise
