Population Science and Community Engagement
San Diego County is one of the most ethnically and geographically robust areas in the U.S.—ranging from affluent and urban population centers to rural agricultural areas. The Population Sciences and Community Engagement (PopSci) Unit is dedicated to overcoming challenges to research and the dissemination and implementation (D&I) of its benefits to all our communities. The PopSci Unit aims to:
- Identify community-based research priorities and the challenges they are facing to address them
- Develop and evaluate community engagement tools and strategies that address community-identified research priorities and overcome challenges
- Use evidence-based strategies to package and disseminate community engagement tools with high scalability potential & assess their uptake and impact
Population Science and Community Engagement Teams
Center for Community Health (CCH)
CCH addresses health disparities and improves health outcomes through an interdisciplinary community partnerships approach.
Dissemination and Implementation Science Center
DISC focuses on dissemination and implementation science across UC San Diego Health Sciences. Key activities include training, consultation, technical assistance, and mentoring to advance D&I science with a local, national, and global impact.
Population Research Scientific Methods (PRSM)
The mission of PRSM is to facilitate and expand the study of population health. We provide training, education, and consulting services that reduce challenges to research for ACTRI affiliates.
Community Research Partnerships (CRP)
CRP builds and supports partnerships with health systems, universities, and public sector agencies in order to promote collaborative research with ACTRI.
Community Advisory Board (CAB)
Community Advisory Board
CAB Goals and Objectives:
The ACTRI receives guidance from its Community Advisory Board (CAB), which is comprised of a core group of community leaders from across our region. Members are invited for their high-level expertise in their engagement of local communities, including community-building (e.g., Global Action Research Center), peer leaders who improve the health of their communities (e.g., San Diego Promotores Academy), and local public health agencies. The CAB provides a strong community voice in all ACTRI activities with two voting representatives on our Executive Committee.
Communication: Support communication between ACTRI researchers and the community by discussing and addressing community issues, health needs and concerns related to research, while working to increase awareness of ACTRI within the community.
-
Provide input and feedback to the Population Science units on community health and related needs and priorities
-
Meet regularly with Population Science and Executive Committee to discuss strategic plans, policy changes, resource allocation and unmet needs
-
Provide on-going input to research personnel how community members think and feel about health research
-
Facilitate communication and collaboration between community-based organization and UCSD Health Science in general and CTRI programs
-
Innovate strategies to overcome misinformation, stigma, and mistrust in research participation with activities respecting communities' cultural sensitivity and perceptions. Fostering an understanding of diverse cultural norms and values
Partnerships: Foster relationships and partnerships with community members to build a sense of respect and trust, while working collaboratively with community partners.
-
Provide input on priorities and research issues in support of emerging health needs
-
Support Population Science outreach activities, including workshops, webinars, trainings, events, Storytelling Campaigns, etc.
-
Manages interactions with community partners and helps to incorporate community ideas and priorities into ACTRI resource allocations and decisions
-
Deliver transparent communication about the proposed research's purpose, methods, and potential benefits. Developing a shared sense of trust by and between ACTRI and community members
-
Building partnerships with community agencies that are mutually beneficial
CAB Members play a key role in the success of translational research by promoting translational education and research projects and sharing timely information with their communities. They serve as a bi-directional link between the community and the ACTRI. They work to identify and address health issues and concerns of San Diego, Imperial Valley, and the regional communities, particularly populations typically at higher risk of poor health outcomes. Additionally, they are in the unique position to provide community perspectives on the entire translational process.
Community Research Council
The Community Research Council is an extension of our CAB’s representation duties. The council is populated by representatives nominated from the over 40 community-based organizations (CBO) that have ongoing work with the PopSci Unit. Council members help co-design and disseminate research initiatives relative to their expertise, including ACTRI K12, RC2 and pilot projects.
- Council benefits include compensation and acknowledgement as valued partners in these activities (e.g., co-investigators and co-authors of publications)
If you would like more information on the ACTRI CAB, are interested in becoming a CAB member, or know someone who would be interested in becoming a CAB member reach out to us!
(Select "PopSci" as the unit)
Education and Training
ACTRI's Population Science and Community Engagement unit actively engages in providing the infrastructure, resources, and training to guide, inform and support community engaged research. Below are education and training opportunities from fellow ACTRI units engaged in population science and community engagement:
Building Research Integrity and Capacity (BRIC) program, a bilingual curriculum in Spanish and English designed to provide community health workers with foundational training in research bioethics.
An Interactive Guide for Promotores de Salud/Community Health Workers
This course is designed to increase research literacy and awareness of ethical research practices among community members involved in academic research. Our target learners are research team members, including Promotores and Community Health Workers, who assist with designing and implementing community and clinic-based health research.
Why do Promotores/CHWs need BRIC training?
Promotores/CHWs are essential members of the research team and, as such, should have access to effective and relevant training. Most research ethics education is designed for academics who have extensive training in research design and methods. We designed BRIC to build research capacity among individuals with little formal academic research training yet involved with the design, implementation, and reporting of community health research. If Promotores/CHWs have an understanding of how research is designed and implemented, they will be better able to carry out their responsibilities when supporting a research study.
Designing Research to Improve Study Recruitment
We have partnered with the Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute (ACTRI) to create a course for researchers who want to improve study recruitment strategies. Designing Research to Improve Study Recruitment applies the principles of respect for persons, beneficence and justice across the lifespan of a research project.
This course objective is to increase awareness about successful recruitment strategies.
Why do academic trainees need to learn how to design research to include various communities?
The involvement of communities in research studies is critically important to informing healthcare policies and practices. Researchers who plan to involve key populations in research will benefit from learning how to plan and conduct responsible research through respectful and authentic partnerships.
UCSD ACTRI Dissemination and Implementation Science Center (DISC)
The UCSD ACTRI DISC is a center focused on dissemination and implementation science across UC San Diego Health Sciences. Key activities provided by the UC San Diego ACTRI DISC include training, consultation, technical assistance, and mentoring to advance D&I science with a local, national, and global impact. The DISC offers a monthly Dissemination and Implementation Science Seminar that covers a wide-variety of topics. Additionally, the DISC co-hosts with the IN STEP Children’s Mental Health Center and San Diego Center for AIDS Research Implementation Science Hub, a bi-monthly seminar series: “Qualitative Methods for Implementation Research and Community Engagement”- UCSD ACTRI DISC Seminar Series
- San Diego Center for AIDS Research (SD CFAR) Implementation Science Hub: Qualitative Methods for Implementation Research and Community Engagement Series
Contacts
Resources
Research Impact Profiles
Explore the real-world impact of research being done at the ACTRI. The TSBM Impact Profiles showcase the potential and demonstrated benefits of our research across community, clinical, economic, and policy sectors. These profiles are intended to be a resource that community members and researchers can use to learn more about the research being done at the ACTRI, societal and research-related benefits that stem from this research, and to bridge knowledge sharing among the public and research communities.
Tips on Working with Faith-Based Organizations
A two-page informational flyer that discusses the role of faith-based organizations, their impact on their communities, and provides tips on engaging with congregation members.
Improving Muslim Youth Participation in Physical Education and Physical Activity in San Diego County
San Diego County is home to a large and growing Muslim population. Its members are diverse, coming from a variety of racial and socioeconomic backgrounds, and include
immigrants, refugees, and native-born Americans.
This guide addresses one specific aspect of those inclusion efforts: improving and encouraging participation of Muslim youth in physical activity.
¡ M Á S F R E S C O ! More Fresh Program Impact Report
Impact report for the Más Fresco More Fresh nutrition incentive program. This report summarized the social media campaign that was used to raise awareness about theprogram and enroll more CalFresh recipients in Southeast and Mid-City San Diego.
Geospatial Health
Geospatial health enables spatial representation of data to support better public health planning and decision-making.
Non-Discrimination Statement
In accordance with applicable Federal and State law and University policy, the University of California does not discriminate, or grant preferences, on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, and/or other protected categories.
More information about Proposition 209 can be found here.
More information about the University of California Anti-Discrimination Policy can be found here.