Meeting Summary – January 2022: Participation of Community Partners in Research

Feb 23, 2022 | Meeting Summary

Article

Khatmi, N., Michels, D., Rojas Castro, D. et al. Interaction and conflict between outreach workers and research officers in implementing collaborative action research in the field of harm reduction: a qualitative study. Harm Reduct J 18, 101 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-021-00551-y

Article Summary

This article describes the experiences of community partners with participation in research projects. The authors provide background information about the importance of collaborative approaches in health interventions, specifically for harm reduction interventions. The specific study examined in this article is called OUTSIDER, which has the goal of increasing outreach for safer injecting drugs education. In this study, the authors facilitated three focus groups with outreach workers to examine their views surrounding the implementation and evaluation of a harm reduction education intervention to help people who inject drugs inject more safely in off-site settings. The authors identified multiple areas of tension between research stakeholders and outreach stakeholders, including challenges related to using scientific versus practical knowledge and methods. The authors noted a need for collaborative research that includes equitable participation and integration of experience from both community stakeholders and research stakeholders. Additionally, the authors noted the need for clarity surrounding how and why the scientific process can be compatible with the realities of service provision for people who use drugs.

Key Themes and Discussion Summary

Communication challenges

Attendees shared and discussed challenges that they’ve experienced in community research surrounding communication challenges between researchers and outreach stakeholders, such as clarity of, timeliness, and validation within communication.

Clinical versus research perspectives

Attendees discussed how differences in perspectives relating to either clinical or research backgrounds can lead to challenges in the community research processes. Attendees noted that most folks typically have research experiences or clinical experiences and may not always understand the opposite perspective.

Need for effective collaboration

Group attendees discussed and emphasized the authors’ point regarding effective collaboration between researchers and community stakeholders. Clear communication was emphasized as being necessary to facilitate effective collaboration.

Address immediate community needs

Reading group attendees identified and discussed the need for community-based research to focus more on the specific needs of community members, rather than focus on research theories that may not have immediate benefits for the community.

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