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218 Researcher and Stakeholder Partner Perspectives on Engaged Research During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 April 2023

Mary E. Grewe
Affiliation:
North Carolina Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
Simone Frank
Affiliation:
North Carolina Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
Laura Villa Torres
Affiliation:
North Carolina Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC Public Health Leadership Program, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
Milenka Jean-Baptiste
Affiliation:
North Carolina Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC Department of Health Behavior, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
Alicia Bilheimer
Affiliation:
North Carolina Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
Alexandra F. Lightfoot
Affiliation:
North Carolina Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC Department of Health Behavior, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
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Abstract

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OBJECTIVES/GOALS: We sought to explore how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted community and stakeholder engagement in research from both researcher and stakeholder partner perspectives and to identify challenges, strategies, and other facilitators affecting their experience, including those related to virtual engagement. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: We conducted semi-structured interviews with ten researchers and eight stakeholder partners who conducted or collaborated on stakeholder-engaged health research during the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020 onwards). Potential participants were identified purposively and through snowball sampling. Interviews were conducted via Zoom, recorded, and transcribed for analysis. The transcribed data were qualitatively analyzed through an iterative process involving memoing and consensus coding using inductive and deductive codes. We reviewed memos and code reports to identify and describe key categories and themes. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: The challenges and facilitators identified varied based on factors such as geographic scope of the partnership (local vs national) and previous engagement type (virtual vs in-person). Many challenges were related to virtual engagement, such as dealing with distractions, limited access to Internet, or difficulty forming relationships online, or to wellbeing and personal circumstances, such as feeling burnt out, managing increased caregiving responsibilities, or concern about risk of illness if conducting in-person activities. Facilitators identified included having strong existing partnerships, utilizing strategies to enhance virtual engagement, adapting activities to manage risk of in-person interactions, and showing support to stakeholder partners. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: By better understanding challenges and facilitators affecting experiences of both researchers and stakeholder partners engaging in research during the COVID-19 pandemic, we can develop strategies and resources to better support research partnerships during future health emergencies.

Type
Health Equity and Community Engagement
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - ND
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is unaltered and is properly cited. The written permission of Cambridge University Press must be obtained for commercial re-use or in order to create a derivative work.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. The Association for Clinical and Translational Science