Deliverable 3

Project: Training and Development to Engage African American Patients with Mental Illness as Research Leaders

PI: Lindsay Sheehan, Co-PIs: Patrick Corrigan, Sonya Ballentine

PCORI Engagement Award, 3974-IIT

01/01/2017- 12/31/2018

Deliverable Brief Description:

Document that contains information regarding the development of a network of integrated care agencies that will facilitate greater ease of sustainability.

Deliverable Context:

To further build interest and knowledge in community-based participatory research (CBPR), we aim to develop a network consisting of partnerships with integrated care agencies and other related organizations serving the Chicago African American community, such as Trilogy, Thresholds, and Heartland Health Outreach. The mission of this network is to provide information about CBPR, about the upcoming trainings, and ultimately updates on funded CBPR projects. This network will be housed on the Chicago Health Disparities Center website ( along with the portfolio of other projects addressing disparities in integrated care. We will be extending membership through contact with fellow PCORI awardees and other agencies and organizations involved in research and service to African Americans with serious mental illness. The plans and activities described here will be designed and executed by members of the Leadership Advisory Board (LAB), a newly formed group of African Americans with lived experience of mental health challenges and healthcare providers.

Due Date: March 31, 2017

Inspiring Change Network

Mission Statement: The Inspiring Change Network mission is to promotecommunity-based participatory research for African Americans with lived experience of mental illness, with an emphasis on addressing health disparities.

Purpose: We propose to engage stakeholders, including individuals with lived experience, clinicians, academic researchers, health care organizations, families, and policymakers in learning more about community-based participatory research and identifying ways to be involved.

List of Organization Members

Trilogy, Inc., Illinois

Heartland Health Outreach, Illinois

Thresholds, Illinois

Southern Illinois Healthcare Foundation, Illinois

Dartmouth Community Mental Health, Oregon

Yale University, Connecticut

Emmaus Ministries, Illinois

Above and Beyond, Illinois

Strategies for Recruiting Additional Members

Once the Inspiring Change Network page is launched, we will undertake additional strategies for recruiting members. First, we will obtain a current list of PCORI awardees and narrow this list to projects addressing serious mental illness. We will invite principal investigators and/or other investigators to join this list. Second, we will reach out to members of the National Consortium on Stigma and Empowerment (NCSE) a partner organization conducting research on mental health to invite members. Third, we will ask current members to refer additional interested members. Finally, we will reach out to faculty from local universities, including Illinois Institute of Technology, who may be interested in obtaining pilot funding in African American health disparities.

Strategies for Engaging Members

Website

As part of an upgrade to Chicago Health Disparities Center (CHDC) website, we will include a tab for the Inspiring Change (IC) Network in addition to the project page. The revised website is set to launch in the first week of April. At the beginning of the launch and throughout the project, we will seek feedback from members in terms of usefulness of network communications. The IC Network page will be updated at least bimonthly and will include the following components:

CBPR News and Research

This section will highlight ongoing CBPR research projects, published CBPR studies, and news related to CBPR. We will solicit information from the network as well as from CHDC work.

Profiles of Lived Experience Leaders

For the profiles section, we will include pictures and brief interviews with African Americans with lived experience employed on research projects. Interview questions will include: 1) Tell us about your role on the research project. 2) What benefits have you derived from CBPR? 3) What are the challenges of CBPR? 4) What do you need to prepare for leadership roles?

Funding Opportunities

This section will focus on funding mechanisms relevant to research on African American health disparities. These will include the seed grants funded through this PCORI project in addition to other local and federal funding opportunities.

Resources

The resources section will include links to CBPR resources for projects and a list of practical tips for CBPR.

Newsletter

We will also send a quarterly e-newsletter to members of the network. This newsletter will be emailed to network members and will include updates on the current project, as well as tips, facts, and resources about using CBPR.

Events

Over the course of the project, we will hold at least one networking event for members, with the purpose of strategizing about research specific to African Americans with serious mental illness.