Community advisory board members' perspectives on their contributions to a large multistate cluster RCT: a mixed methods study.

Background: Community advisory boards (CABs) are an established approach to ensuring research reflects community priorities. This paper examines two CABs that are part of the HEALing Communities Study which aims to reduce overdose mortality. This analysis aimed to understand CAB members' expectations, experiences, and perspectives on CAB structure, communication, facilitation, and effectiveness during the first year of an almost fully remote CAB implementation. Current literature exploring these perspectives is limited. Methods: We collected qualitative and survey data simultaneously from members (n = 53) of two sites' CABs in the first 9 months of CAB development. The survey assessed trust, communication, and relations; we also conducted 32 semi-structured interviews. We analyzed the survey results descriptively. The qualitative data were analyzed using a deductive codebook based on the RE-AIM PRISM framework. Themes were drawn from the combined qualitative data and triangulated with survey results to further enrich the findings. Results: CAB members expressed strong commitment to overall study goals and valued the representation of occupational sectors. The qualitative data described a dissonance between CAB members' commitment to the mission and unmet expectations for influencing the study within an advisory role. Survey results indicated lower satisfaction with the research teams' ability to create a mutually beneficial process, clear communication, and sharing of power. Conclusion: Building a CAB on a remote platform, within a study utilizing a community engagement strategy, still presents challenges to fully realizing the potential of a CAB. These findings can inform more effective operationalizing of community-engaged research through enhanced CAB engagement.

"Don't Shoot, I Want to Grow Up": Findings of a Multicity Youth-led Health Assessment.

BACKGROUND: Youth of color are one of the fastest growing segments of the U.S. POPULATION: Collaborative equitable approaches to research and action present potential avenues to engage youth of color meaningfully in health research and action initiatives. OBJECTIVES: This article explores community-based participa-tory research (CBPR) as an approach that presents valuable opportunities to engage youth and young adults of color in leadership in public health initiatives to create healthy communities. METHODS: Integrating a CBPR approach, we partnered with grassroots leaders and community organizations across five cities to engage youth and young adults of color (n = 35) in identifying health assets and threats to young people's well-being using mixed-methods including surveys, photovoice, field observations, and interviews. RESULTS: This article focuses on presenting three major themes that emerged from the youth-led health assessment across five cities: 1) relations with police, 2) stress, and 3) safety. Findings indicate youth are well aware of the role that interlocking structures play in individual and collective health and well-being. CONCLUSIONS: CBPR presents promising approaches to engage youth meaningfully in health promotion initiatives providing the opportunities for youth researchers to document accurately nuanced understandings of social determinants of health impacting the health and well-being of youth of color.