Launching native health leaders: reducing mistrust of research through student peer mentorship.

Objectives: We assessed the impact of Launching Native Health Leaders (LNHL), a peer-mentoring and networking program that introduced American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) undergraduates to health and research careers and concepts of community-based participatory research (CBPR).

Methods: We conducted 15 interviews and 1 focus group with students who had attended 1 or more LNHL meetings, which took place during 9 professional health research conferences in 2006 to 2009. We completed data collection in 2010, within 1 to 4 years of LNHL participant engagement in program activities.