141st APHA Annual Meeting

In This section

280534
Ethical challenges in participatory research: A circumpolar perspective

Tuesday, November 5, 2013 : 12:30 PM - 12:45 PM

Rhonda M. Johnson, DrPH, MPH, FNP , Health Sciences, University of Alaska Anchorage, Anchorage, AK
Interest and experience in participatory research projects has been growing for some time in the North, yet lessons learned from these complex and still evolving community campus partnerships are still rarely shared. Yet, as many know who have been engaged in such partnerships, it is often the process of engagement between diverse partners, and the local strategies created to address inevitable tensions that arise within such collaborations, which give rise to deeper understandings of shared health issues, and support novel interventions and outcomes. The recognition of potential ethical challenges unique to this type of engaged, adaptable and flexible community research is also growing, but this too is still fairly rare in the literature. A Special Issue of the International Journal of Circumpolar Health was planned and implemented in 2010-2012. The original intent and call was for original research papers, as well as expository and survey papers that should inform our shared understanding of at least one of the following aspects of Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR), with a particular focus on northern communities and projects:Defining partnerships and communities;Issue identification;Data collection and methods;Interpretation and dissemination of results;Social action/advocacy; and Ethical challenges and lessons learned. This presentation will share the experience of planning and publishing this Special Issue, including the challenge of building the evidence-base for informed and collaborative research in our sparsely populated and culturally diverse region, and contributing to the growing global discussions about participatory research partnerships' capacity to improve health outcomes and decrease health disparities.

Learning Areas:
Ethics, professional and legal requirements
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
Describe unique circumpolar context of participatory research in the arctic region (Alaska-US, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden) Discuss challenges (and strengths) of local and/or tribal review processes for community-based research Describe two lessons learned from the experience of developing a special issue of the International Journal of Circumpolar Health devoted to addressing ethical challenges in participatory research

Keywords: Ethics, Community Collaboration

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I currently serve as President of the American Society of Circumpolar Health and have been actively involved in circumpolar (arctic) research. I direct the graduate program in public health (MPH) in Alaska that is focused on northern health issues, and I also teach a graduate course in public health ethics. I served as Scientific Editor for the Special Issue of the International Journal of Circumpolar health devoted to ethical challenges in circumpolar health research.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.