Making Research Work for Your Community: A Guidebook to Successful Research Partnerships

Since 2008, Natasha Ray, New Haven Healthy Start Consortium Coordinator and physician researchers from the Yale Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program (YRWJFCSP) have partnered on a series of research projects to address maternal health issues in New Haven, CT. During these partnerships, Natasha Ray, Kenn Harris, Director of New Haven Healthy Start and community research faculty from the YRWJFCSP reflected on what they experienced as best practices in community partnered research. An opportunity arose between these two long standing research partners to gain a greater understanding of and enhance the experiences of other community leaders (including other Healthy Start Programs) and university researchers in collaborative relationships. In 2012 Natasha Ray, BSc and YRWJF Clinical Scholar, Karen Wang, MD launched a qualitative study to gain insights from both community leaders in New Haven and university researchers on practices that would benefit both partners. This guidebook was created as a result of their work together and the findings of their interviews with 20+ community leaders and university researchers. It is intended to help communities and community organizations in their decisions to: (1) Conduct their own research (2) Work effectively with university researchers (3) Maximize the value of community-university research relationships.

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