Debra Benfield, MEd, RD, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Physician Assistant Program, Victoria Hall, 111 North Chestnut Road, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, 336/716.2026, dbenfield@wfubmc.edu and Scott D. Rhodes, PhD, MPH, CHES, Department of Public Health Sciences, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Section on Social Sciences and Health Policy, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157-1063.

Background: Because reducing and eliminating health disparities within the US requires innovative approaches that reach beyond access to care and traditional service provision, the Wake Forest University Health Sciences (WFUHS) Physician Assistant (PA) Program has incorporated community-based participatory research (CBPR) into the program curriculum through the Master Project. The Master Project places an emphasis on health and quality of life improvements through community partnerships and social change.

Methods: PA students partner for 12-16 months with community members and representatives as community mentors, and WFUHS faculty as academic advisors. Students participate in CBPR projects through: community assessments, problem definition, asset identification and development, design of research methodology, data collection and analysis, interpretation of data, dissemination of findings, and application of the results to address community concerns (intervention/action).

Results: Examples of CBPR projects that PA students have participated in, include: an action-oriented community diagnosis to examine health care challenges facing uninsured community members and to direct community-led action in Boone, NC; the use of photovoice to explore and build community capacity within resource-limited Latino housing communities in Winston-Salem, NC; the use of photovoice to assist in the establishment of a patient-community advocacy board for an HIV clinic; and, the use of key-informant interviews and focus groups to understand socio-cultural contexts of HIV risk and AIDS service utilization within a Latino community and guide community-driven interventions.

Conclusions: Integrating CBPR into the curriculum, the Program is educating future clinicians to contribute to health disparity reduction and adding to the critical mass of clinicians and scientists who have requisite skills and experiences to understand, value, and negotiate authentic, non-token community partnerships.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to

• Describe the rationale of implementing CBPR into the curriculum of mid-level primary care health care providers;
• Identify the potential contributions of direct action community organizing strategies to the education of future primary care providers;
• List the underlying values used to bring community organizations together to create a shared vision and effect policy and programmatic change;
• Critically analyze the usefulness and practical applications of the concept “building social capital” in developing community-based interventions and policy; and,
• Articulate the characteristics of relationship building and collaboration which are valued and embraced by those involved in the development of CBPR partnerships.

Keywords: Community-Based Public Health, Education

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.