Local Lens: Community Researchers Share the Impact of their Research
The Community Research for Health Equity grantees share their findings and highlight how their research uplifted community voices to create relevant, sustainable, and trusted solutions.
The Community Research for Health Equity program, managed by AcademyHealth and supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, supported 10 community-led research projects that sought to elevate community voices in local health system transformation efforts. These projects were designed and led by community-based teams to address health issues that mattered most to them.
Explore the research impact stories below to learn how each research team uncovered critical insights about the health issues affecting their communities, generated evidence essential for addressing health disparities and structural inequities, and contributed solutions that will shape the future of their local health systems. Together, these stories illustrate the power of community-led research and demonstrate how communities can create relevant, sustainable, and trusted solutions when they shape their own research agenda.
Arizona State University, a Community Research for Health Equity grantee, shared why American Indian and Alaska Native people remain underrepresented in health professions and outlined steps it is taking to ensure Indigenous students can pursue and complete their education in nursing and medicine.
The Disability Policy Consortium, a Community Research for Health Equity grantee, shared its research on inequities and barriers to access to Home and Community-Based Services among Latinx and Black/African American populations with disabilities in Springfield, MA, and outlined how they are translating findings into concrete policy and practice changes.
The Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU), a Community Research for Health Equity grantee, shared its research on systemic barriers to care for Arab and South Asian Muslim communities in Southeast Michigan and outlined how they are translating findings into concrete policy and practice changes.
The Institute for the Advancement of Minority Health, a Community Research for Health Equity grantee, shared its research on how perceived racism shapes care-seeking and patient–provider interactions and outlined steps the team is taking to address local health inequities.
Oklahoma State University, a Community Research for Health Equity grantee, shared arts-based research documenting reproductive health inequities and outlined co-created solutions to improve information access, coverage, care, and services.
Pride Center San Antonio, a Community Research for Health Equity grantee, shared its research documenting LGBTQ+ San Antonians’ health experiences and outlined how the findings are spurring changes on an individual, community, and local level in the city.
Refugee Community Partnership (RCP), a Community Research for Health Equity grantee, shared its research findings on language access barriers faced by patients with limited English proficiency and outlined approaches to improve language access in health care systems.
Think Kids, a Community Research for Health Equity grantee, outlined their research findings and highlighted what is needed to close the health surveillance gap.
The University of North Carolina, a Community Research for Health Equity grantee, shared their research findings and outlined how youth in Tarboro, NC, are advocating for their mental health care.
The University of Texas at Austin, a Community Research for Health Equity, in partnership with the Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware, shared the first dedicated health data on Colonial Era Native American Tribes in the Delmarva region and outlined how their findings are driving systemic change.