Participatory evaluation of a training designed to increase community-based participatory research (CBPR) on breast cancer

Scientists suspect that up to 70% of breast cancer could have an environmental cause, yet the link between breast cancer and the environment and social disparities in breast cancer has received inadequate research attention to date. CRIBS (Building Sustainable Community-Based Research Infrastructure to Better Science) is an NIEHS-funded partnership to stimulate community-based participatory research (CBPR) that addresses these gaps in breast cancer research. The partnership grew out of long-standing collaborations focused on the environment, disparities and breast cancer among the California Breast Cancer Research Program (CBCRP) of the University of California, Plumbline Coaching and Consulting, and Commonweal (a nonprofit organization). In January 2012, twelve community-academic teams from across California began an intensive training program (ITP), that includes face to face training, online training in a web-supported learning community, mock grant review, and technical assistance designed to increase funded collaborative research on environmental causes of and social disparities in breast cancer. This presentation describes the design of the evaluation of the CRIBS ITP interactive curriculum, the CRIBS partnership, and other process and outcome variables. The evaluation actively involves CRIBS partners and participants as critical stakeholders in both the process and outcome evaluation. Findings from the evaluation have helped to identify program strengths and allow for continuous monitoring of the program to ensure it is meeting the diverse needs of participants. Preliminary results suggest that CRIBS is a replicable model for innovative training that can build effective and sustainable partnerships and create community-driven solutions to address breast cancer and its causes.