Community engagement to implement evidence-based practices in the HEALing communities study

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Community-Based Research
• Opioid Crisis Intervention

Background:

• Evidence-based practice implementation for opioid overdose reduction is suboptimal.
• Community engagement enhances the adoption and sustainability of interventions.
• The HEALing Communities Study (HCS) targets opioid overdose deaths via the Communities That HEAL (CTH) intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate how community engagement supports evidence-based practice implementation for the opioid crisis.
• To provide a replicable, community-engaged model for addressing local opioid crises.
• To advance community-engaged research and promote the adoption of evidence-based practices.

Main Methods:

• The Communities That HEAL (CTH) intervention utilizes a phased, community-engaged, data-driven planning process.
• The process is rooted in community-based participatory research principles.
• Phases include preparation, getting started, organization, data profiling, action planning, implementation, monitoring, and sustainability planning.

Main Results:

• The CTH protocol offers a standardized yet adaptable framework for community-engaged interventions across diverse settings.
• Early challenges in community engagement were identified and addressed.
• The study is designed to yield findings on the effectiveness of community engagement in addressing the opioid crisis.

Conclusions:

• Community engagement is crucial for the successful implementation and sustainability of evidence-based practices in combating the opioid crisis.
• The HCS offers a scalable model for communities nationwide to address their local opioid crisis.
• Findings will contribute to advancing community-engaged research and practice in public health.