Testing to prevent colon cancer: how rural community members took on a community-based intervention.

Participatory research can elevate research relevance and effectiveness. The literature contains few first-hand descriptions of community members engaged in research. In 2003, the High Plains Research Network convened a Community Advisory Council (CAC) that quickly began providing input, feedback, innovation, and dissemination efforts.

Boot camp translation: a method for building a community of solution.

Objective: A crucial yet currently insufficient step in biomedical research is the translation of scientific, evidence-based guidelines and recommendations into constructs and language accessible to every-day patients. By building a community of solution that integrates primary care with public health and community-based organizations, evidence-based medical care can be translated into language and constructs accessible to community members and readily implemented to improve health.

Methods: Using a community-based participatory research approach, the High Plains Research Network (HPRN) and its Community Advisory Council developed a process to translate evidence into messages and dissemination methods to improve health in rural Colorado.