Background: Distrust in clinical trials is a barrier to participation amongst Black and Hispanic communities. Disparities in trust may be rooted in awareness of historic injustices and personal adverse healthcare experiences.

Objective: Use the Bridging Research, Accurate, Information, and Dialogue (BRAID) model to understand barriers to diverse participation and improve trust in science and clinical trials.

Methods: Community- and faith-based organizations in Bronx, NY, identified trusted messengers to serve as experts in a series of community dialogues. Between June and August 2022, 12 BRAID conversation circles were convened. Physicians, researchers, and industry professionals were invited to participate in the BRAID circles to address community questions and concerns. Surveys assessed community experts’ knowledge and attitudes toward clinical trials before and after participation. BRAID circle transcripts were coded to identify emerging themes and subthemes.

Results: Eighteen community experts participated. Demographics: age 26-75, 70.5% female, 58.8% Non-Hispanic Black, and 41.2% Hispanic/Latino. At the conclusion of the circle series 84.6% shared they would “definitely” participate in a clinical trial and 83.3% “definitely” would recommend participation to others, compared to 38% and 58.3%, respectively, at the start of the study. Themes revealed strategies to improve trust including acknowledgement of past historical injustices, increasing knowledge about research trials/regulations, stronger doctor-patient relationships, and recommendations delivered by trusted community messengers.

Conclusion: The BRAID model can improve community trust and increase awareness of the value of diversity in clinical research trials. Community experts were willing to share their experiences and information learned with their social networks.