Community representatives' involvement in Clinical and Translational Science Awardee activities.

OBJECTIVES: To 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. METHODS: The inventory tool was distributed to each of the 60 CTSAs using a secure web application. RESULTS: Forty-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). CONCLUSIONS: This 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.

A community-based wellness program to reduce depression in African Americans: results from a pilot intervention.

BACKGROUND: African Americans are less likely than non-Hispanic Whites to find antidepressants acceptable or seek care for depression. OBJECTIVE: To develop and pilot test a culturally tailored, community-based, psychoeducational wellness and exercise promotion program to reduce depressive symptoms in African Americans. METHODS: Participants were African Americans with moderate depressive symptoms who were interested in exercise but were not exercising regularly. They attended a 6-week psychoeducational group program during which they set personal activity goals and learned depression self-management skills. We conducted pre- and postintervention surveys and postintervention feedback sessions. RESULTS: Twenty-one African Americans participated in the intervention. The program had excellent attendance and satisfaction. We found a large reduction in depressive symptoms, with mean Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) scores dropping from 14.8 to 7.1 (p < .0001), and increases in exercise and depression self-efficacy and behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: This pilot study offers promising preliminary evidence to inform further research on the use of community-based, culturally tailored wellness programs to address depression.

Ethics and community-based participatory research: perspectives from the field.

Exploring the importance of ethical issues in the conduct of community-based participatory research (CBPR) continues to be an important topic for researchers and practitioners. This article uses the Beyond Sabor Project, a CBPR project implemented in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, as a case example to discuss ethical issues such as the importance of increasing community involvement in research, ensuring that communities benefit from the research, sharing leadership roles, and sensitive issues regarding data collection and sharing. Thereafter, this article concludes with a brief discussion of six principles that can inform the practice of ethical conduct when implementing CBPR studies. This article also lists additional reading resources on the importance of ethics in the conduct of CBPR.

The African American Wellness Village in Portland, Ore.

More than 80% of African Americans in Oregon reside in the Portland metropolitan area; African Americans comprise 1.7% of the state's population. Although relatively small, the African American population in the state experiences substantial health disparities. The African American Health Coalition, Inc was developed to implement initiatives that would reduce these disparities and to promote increased communication and trust between the African American community and local institutions and organizations. One of these initiatives is an annual Wellness Week featuring an African American Wellness Village. The Wellness Village uses a model of cultural sensitivity to provide access to free health screenings, links between health care organizations and African American community members, and health education and information. The African American Health Coalition, Inc obtained a Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) 2010 grant to sustain this programming. The Wellness Village is supported by five major sponsors; annual attendance has ranged from 700 to 900 participants. The African American Health Coalition's evaluation of the event indicates that more than 50% of respondents identify the Wellness Village as the only place that they receive health screenings. Participants with access to screenings elsewhere report that a culturally sensitive environment that inspires trust is the reason they prefer the screenings offered at the Wellness Village. Culturally sensitive health fairs such as the Wellness Village may play an important role in bringing preventive health screenings to African American communities. Collaboration between black and white health care providers is critical in this effort. Partnerships must be built at multiple levels, including institutions to provide financial resources and in-kind donations, community members to assist with outreach and recruitment, and health care professionals to conduct screenings and services.

Wellness Within REACH: mind, body, and soul: a no-cost physical activity program for African Americans in Portland, Oregon, to combat cardiovascular disease.

Wellness Within REACH (WWR) aims to saturate the heart of the African-American community in Portland, Oregon, with culturally appropriate physical activity opportunities. The purpose of this project is to develop and implement no-cost physical activities to increase the number of African Americans leading active lifestyles, while shifting the community norm. Certified African-American instructors conduct exercise classes at community venues. A pre- and post-questionnaire is administered to participants attending exercise classes each quarter, to assess frequency of attendance, lifestyle changes, and attitudes over time. To date, more than 700 individuals have participated in the WWR classes. Participants (58%) in a recent sample (N=75) reported exercising more now than in the 6 months prior to joining the program. Community members are bringing members of their social networks to try classes otherwise not available or affordable to them. By centering classes around the culture of this specific community, WWR has become a "movement" of healthy, active living.