A blended learning curriculum for training peer researchers to conduct community-based participatory research

ABSTRACT

Peer researchers (PRs) are research team members who share traits (e.g. gender, age, sexual orientation, diagnosis, income, housing situation, etc.) with study participants. Participatory methods and some fields (e.g. HIV/AIDS) expect PRs to be equitably involved in a project. Moreover, in Canada, there is a current impetus to include ‘the patient’ in health research. PRs often join a project without any formal research training, yet they are frequently tasked with suggesting appropriate language, recruiting participants, conducting interviews, administering surveys, analyzing data, and presenting findings. While there is literature on PR hiring, ethical considerations of PR engagement, and PR experiences, the methods of training PRs remain underreported. A blended learning curriculum (i.e. combination of webinars, didactic in-person presentation, filmed simulation, etc.), informed by the principles of action learning and the concept of reciprocity, has shown preliminary effectiveness in training PRs across two studies. This paper will present the curriculum, alongside exploratory evaluation results (n = 7), with details on how the curriculum changed from one study to the next and how reciprocity between academic and peer researchers led to stronger collaborations.

KEYWORDS:

• Action learning
• blended learning
• community-based participatory research
• peer researchers
• HIV/AIDS

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN) under Grant numbers 1043 and 1074, and by the Universities Without Walls training program for in-kind curriculum development. We acknowledge the participants for their contributions, and thank Peter A. Newman for his assistance with this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Andrew D. Eaton, MSW, RSW, is Group Programming Coordinator at the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT) and a PhD student at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work (FIFSW) at the University of Toronto. Mr. Eaton has received grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the CIHR Canadian HIV Trials Network (CIHR-CTN), and the Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN). All of Mr. Eaton’s research is grounded in the principles of community-based participatory research, and he frequently partners with peer researchers. Mr. Eaton’s doctoral work is comprised of a community-based, pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) that is testing the feasibility of a novel group intervention to improve coping for older adults affected by HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorder (HAND).

Francisco Ibáñez-Carrasco, PhD, is an educator and researcher. His research focuses on teaching and learning to maximize and involvement of all stakeholders, especially people living with HIV. He is Program Manager for the CIHR-funded Universities Without Walls (UWW), a unique interdisciplinary eLearning program to disseminate program science and community-based health research practices. In addition, Dr. Ibáñez-Carrasco hosts an online talk show for peer researchers. He also conducts research on stigma, mental health, cognitive health, and aging with HIV.

Shelley L. Craig, PhD, RSW, is an Associate Professor and Associate Dean, Academic at the FIFSW and is the Canada Research Chair in Sexual and Gender Minority Youth (SGMY). She has a 20-year history of utilizing community-based participatory approaches in social work research and practice, particularly with SGMY. She has created youth advisory boards to guide research that led her to implement a community-based continuum of care for SGMY. Dr. Craig has published 54 refereed articles and book chapters in publications such as Journal of Social Service Research, Journal of Community Practice, and Journal of Community Psychology. She has 116 peer-reviewed presentations and 35 invited (often international) talks. She is heavily involved in community and recently served as the Co-Chair of WorldPride 2014.

Soo Chan Carusone, PhD, is Director of Research at Casey House (a community-based HIV hospital) and an Assistant Professor (part-time) in the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact at McMaster University. Dr. Chan Carusone strives to ensure that HIV research is representative of the complex and intricate lives of people living with HIV. She has received funding from CIHR, OHTN, and the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research (CANFAR). Her work is having a major impact on how health care systems and clinicians understand and engage with complex clients living with HIV.

Michael Montess, is a graduate student who works as Research Assistant with Mr. Eaton at the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT). The graduate student emerging programs of research are focused on topics concerning the ethics of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), recreational sport as a means of building resilience amongst LGBTQ+ communities, and the dynamics of peer researchers in community-based participatory research.

Gordon A. Wells is a graduate student who works as Research Assistant with Mr. Eaton at the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT). The graduate student emerging programs of research are focused on topics concerning the ethics of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), recreational sport as a means of building resilience amongst LGBTQ+ communities, and the dynamics of peer researchers in community-based participatory research.

Galo F. Ginocchio is a graduate student who works as Research Assistant with Mr. Eaton at the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT). The graduate student emerging programs of research are focused on topics concerning the ethics of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), recreational sport as a means of building resilience amongst LGBTQ+ communities, and the dynamics of peer researchers in community-based participatory research.

ORCID

Andrew D. Eaton http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1331-1222

Francisco Ibáñez-Carrasco http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6753-1602

Shelley L. Craig http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7991-7764

Soo Chan Carusone http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3977-0523

Galo F. Ginocchio http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2356-8363

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN) under Grant numbers 1043 and 1074, and by the Universities Without Walls training program for in-kind curriculum development.