Development and use of a communications tool to recruit policy makers to a Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) partnership for childhood obesity prevention

The involvement of policy makers in the CBPR process is recognized as a critical factor in the design of research that matters to communities and the translation of research to practice. However, given the multiple constituencies to which they must attend, competing demands for advocates' time, as well as the degree of participation required, engaging policy makers in CBPR is challenging. Effective communication tools are vital to attract and develop champions necessary to positively effect social change. As part of a larger strategy to recruit policy makers to the Childhood Obesity Prevention Research Partnership (Research Partnership), the Healthy Jacksonville Childhood Obesity Prevention Coalition (Coalition) developed a community-driven video presentation to: solicit an emotional connection with legislative representatives and other community leaders, educate them on issues of concern to the Coalition and engage them in the participatory research process. This presentation focuses on the development and use of this communication tool by the Research Partnership and the Coalition. Structure, content, critical points for participatory decision-making, solidification of community participation and the desired action steps and production options that can be executed on a limited budget are described. Excerpts from the tool are used to illustrate these points. The presentation concludes with a description of the multiple ways in which this tool has and can be used, alone or in conjunction with other approaches, as a method to support the Partnership and Coalition's goal of changing policy related to childhood obesity.