Best Practices for CEnR Partnerships for Health Equity

Best practices for community-engaged research (CEnR) partnerships to promote health equity can mitigate barriers to health care, especially during public health crises. They also establish value congruence specific to the promotion of health equity for underserved communities.

Our goal was to co-develop best practices for CEnR partnerships promoting health equity.

A purposeful sample of 9 researchers and 13 community members with experience in CEnR participated in the study. A first version of the best practices document was developed based on feedback from community members during pre-engagement activities that sought to co-design a sustainable model for trustworthy CEnR partnerships. The best practices document was further developed from compilation and categorization of comments from study participants in virtual meetings.

The best practices document included general guiding principles for CEnR partnerships promoting health equity and specific guidelines for partnerships relevant to COVID-19 testing. Foundational practices for all CEnR partnerships include the development of shared goals, accountability, and transparency. Guidelines specific to the social, ethical, and behavioral implications (SEBI) of COVID-19 testing include identifying community resources and challenges, identifying and communicating the value and risks associated with COVID-19 and COVID-19 testing, and minimizing risks and hardships relevant to COVID-19 testing.

Best practices for CEnR partnerships promoting health equity should be tailored to the specific CEnR partnership. Future research could explore how community members and researchers implement CEnR partnership best practices to promote health equity for underserved communities.