Exploring Challenges and Strategies in Partnering With Community-Based Organizations to Advance Intervention...

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Community-Based Participatory Research
• Implementation Science

Background:

• Minoritized older adults experience significant health disparities and underutilize evidence-based interventions.
• Diverse aging populations necessitate collaboration between gerontology researchers and minority community organizations.
• Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) and Implementation Science (IS) provide frameworks for community-engaged research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and discuss critical challenges in gerontology researcher-community partnerships from the researchers' perspective.
• To examine challenges across intervention design, implementation, and post-implementation phases.
• To offer potential solutions for overcoming partnership obstacles.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Equity-focused Implementation Research for health programs framework.
• Identified and discussed seven key challenges encountered by researchers in community partnerships.
• Presented potential solutions to facilitate successful collaborations.

Main Results:

• Researchers face distinct challenges in establishing and sustaining partnerships with community organizations.
• Challenges arise during pre-intervention design, implementation, and post-implementation phases.
• Early career researchers or those new to community-engaged research may face heightened difficulties.

Conclusions:

• Proactive planning for potential obstacles is crucial for successful researcher-community partnerships.
• Addressing partnership challenges can advance collaborative research to improve health outcomes for older adults.
• Strengthening academic-community collaborations is vital for promoting health equity in aging populations.