Developing relevant assessments of community-engaged research partnerships: A community-based participatory approach to evaluating clinical and health research study teams.

Background/Objective: In 2017, the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research (MICHR) and community partners in Flint, Michigan collaborated to launch a research funding program and evaluate the dynamics of those research partnerships receiving funding. While validated assessments for community-engaged research (CEnR) partnerships were available, the study team found none sufficiently relevant to conducting CEnR in the context of the work. MICHR faculty and staff along with community partners living and working in Flint used a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach to develop and administer a locally relevant assessment of CEnR partnerships that were active in Flint in 2019 and 2021. Methods: Surveys were administered each year to over a dozen partnerships funded by MICHR to evaluate how community and academic partners assessed the dynamics and impact of their study teams over time. Results: The results suggest that partners believed that their partnerships were engaging and highly impactful. Although many substantive differences between community and academic partners' perceptions over time were identified, the most notable regarded the financial management of the partnerships. Conclusion: This work contributes to the field of translational science by evaluating how the financial management of community-engaged health research partnerships in a locally relevant context of Flint can be associated with these teams' scientific productivity and impact with national implications for CEnR. This work presents evaluation methods which can be used by clinical and translational research centers that strive to implement and measure their use of CBPR approaches.

Developing and maintaining intergenerational relationships in an economically vulnerable community: findings from the Flint women's study.

Few studies describe how community disadvantage impacts intergenerational relationships. Using interviews with women and service providers (n = 100), we explored benefits and challenges of intergenerational relationships in Flint, Michigan, an economically vulnerable community. Women valued relationships that increased social connections and generativity; however, few community resources promoted such relationships. Intergenerational relationships were important for leaving a social legacy in lieu of a meaningful economic legacy. Some middle-aged women are overwhelmed by caregiving, balancing employment while caring for multiple generations. Women desired intergenerational activities that include children and younger adult women. Further, caregiving programs should attend to the needs of middle-aged caregivers.

The Flint women's study: community perspectives on contraception and family planning, sexuality education and barriers to reproductive health.

Teenage pregnancy can have adverse social and health outcomes, and rates are high in Flint, Michigan as compared to the rest of the state and the USA. It is important to understand contributing factors to adolescent pregnancy to be able to better address this issue. This study examined qualitative data from interviews with 100 community members who participated in the Flint Women's Study, a study designed to better understand the hopes, dreams and needs of women in Flint, and their suggestions for how to address identified needs. Using a Community Based Participatory Approach, data were collected and analysed by a team of community members and academic researchers. The paper focuses on the theme of family planning among young women which included attitudes about contraception, sexuality education and bio-medical and structural barriers to accessing reproductive health. Community members emphasised the need for increased access to comprehensive contraception options, improved sexuality education in schools and from health care providers, and ultimately valuing young women.

Intersectionality, special populations, needs and suggestions: the Flint Women's study.

BACKGROUND: Equitable access to services that promote health and wellbeing is an important component of social justice. A community-engaged participatory qualitative study was conducted in Flint, Michigan, USA, to understand the needs of special populations (young women, perinatal women and new mothers, older women, women with disabilities, and LGBTQIA women) and elicit their ideas about solutions. METHODS: In-depth interviews (n = 100) were conducted. Participants were either women living in the Flint area, human service providers in the area, or both. A team of community and academic coders analyzed the data using an a priori framework. RESULTS: Participants identified needs of different groups of women and suggested ways to address them. Access to healthy food, reducing healthcare costs, and improving transportation, job opportunities and affordable quality housing were crosscutting themes across all groups of women. Mentoring support was said to protect vulnerable young women from the risk of human trafficking. Older women were said to gain a sense of purpose, build their social support and reduce their loneliness by engaging in mentoring younger women. Women with disabilities were reported to benefit from infrastructure accessibility and authentic inclusion in all areas of life. Providing help that considers their dignity, pride and self-worth were suggested. LGBTQIA women were reported to have housing needs due to discrimination; mostly turned down as renters and can be rejected from faith-based homeless shelters. LGBTQIA women would also benefit from increased sensitivity among healthcare providers. For all groups of women, streamlining access to social services and other resources, building social support networks and increasing awareness about existing resources were recommended. CONCLUSION: Efforts directed towards improving women's health and wellbeing should include perspectives and suggestions of diverse groups of women from the community. Acting on suggestions that emanate from the community's lived experiences may reduce inequalities in health and wellbeing.

"I think that's all a lie I think It's genocide": Applying a Critical Race Praxis to Youth Perceptions of Flint Water Contamination.

Background: In April 2014, the emergency manager of Flint, Michigan switched the city's water supplier from Detroit's water department to the Flint River. The change in water source resulted in the Flint Water Crisis (FWC) in which lead (Pb) from the city's network of old pipes leached into residents' tap water. Residents of Flint reported concerns about the water to officials; however, the concerns were ignored for more than a year. Objective: This study sought to understand how Black youth in Flint conceptualize, interpret, and respond to racism they perceive as part of the normal bureaucracy contributing to the FWC. Methods: In 2016, we conducted four community forums with Flint youth aged 13 to 17 years. Sixty-eight youth participated with 93% self-identifying as Black. Participants completed a brief survey. We audio-recorded the forums and transcribed them verbatim. Critical Race Theory (CRT) guided the development of the interview protocol and Public Health Critical Race Praxis (PHCRP) served as an interpretive framework during qualitative data analysis. Content analyses were completed using software. Results: Many youth viewed the FWC through a racially conscious frame. They described Flint as a Black city where historical and contemporary forms of racial stratification persist. Some described the contamination of the city's water as a form of genocide targeting Blacks. Conclusions: The findings from this exploratory study suggest some Black youth in Flint have difficulty coping with the FWC. Those who perceive it through a racial frame attribute the crisis to racism. They feel distressed about this and other traumas (eg, failure to address high rates of crime) they perceived as racism-related. Future research should examine the implications for specific mental health outcomes among youth.