Objectives: To describe our partnership and research infrastructure development strategies and discuss steps in developing a culturally grounded framework to obtain data and identify a trauma-informed evidence-based intervention.
Method: We present funding strategies that develop and maintain the partnership and tools that guided research development. We share how a community research committee was formed and the steps taken to clarify the health concern and develop a culturally tailored framework. We present results from our needs/assets assessment that led to the selection of a trauma-informed intervention. Finally, we describe the agreements and protocols developed.
Results: We produced a strong sustainable research team that brought program and research funding to the community. We created a framework and matrix of program objectives grounded in community knowledge. We produced preliminary data and research and publication guidelines that have facilitated program and research funding to address community-driven concerns.
Conclusions: This study highlights the importance of bidirectional collaboration with American Indian communities, as well as the time and funding needed to maintain these relationships. A long-term approach is necessary to build a sustainable research infrastructure. Developing effective and efficient ways to build culturally based community research portfolios provides a critical step toward improving individual and community health outcomes.
Keywords: American Indian and Alaskan Native; CBPR; CPT; HIV; PTSD; cognitive processing therapy; community-based participatory research; partnership development; posttraumatic stress disorder.