Measuring institutional community engagement: Adding value to academic health systems

Area of Science:

• Academic Medicine
• Community Engagement Metrics
• Health Systems Research

Background:

• Medical schools increasingly recognize community engagement (CE) as a core mission alongside clinical care, education, and research.
• Academic health systems (AHSs) often lack standardized tools for measuring and evaluating the impact of their CE initiatives.
• Nationwide efforts encourage the development of systematic CE metrics, particularly for institutions receiving Clinical and Translational Science Awards.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a practical model for analyzing and evaluating diverse CE activities within AHSs.
• To describe the implementation of a CE survey at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) for tracking faculty and staff engagement.
• To outline the development of a real-time CE dashboard to support institutional CE efforts.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a five-component CE practical model: research, education, community outreach/service, policy/advocacy, and clinical care.
• Administered an annual survey to MCW faculty and staff to assess the types and volume of CE activities.
• Aggregated survey data to generate departmental CE reports and inform institutional leadership.

Main Results:

• The annual survey provided insights into the distribution and nature of CE activities across MCW departments.
• Data collected informed the strategic development of enhanced CE tracking and evaluation methods.
• Progress was made towards creating a CE dashboard for real-time activity monitoring and resource provision.

Conclusions:

• The CE components practical model offers a framework for evaluating CE activities in AHSs.
• The MCW survey and subsequent dashboard development represent significant steps in quantifying and advancing the CE mission.
• Systematic tracking and evaluation are crucial for demonstrating the value and impact of CE within academic health systems.