UAB Division of Surgical Oncology Assistant Professor Kimberly Kopecky, M.D., MSCI, completed the 2024 UAB Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) immersion training earlier this year.

The CBPR intensive training program educates participants about ways to improve health equity through community partnership. This program focuses on health issues identified by the community with the goal of reducing healthcare disparities and improving health outcomes.

During the week-long training, Kopecky and her program cohorts discussed privilege, community perspectives, and ways to build respectful relationships with community partners.

Participants heard from members of Community Advisory Groups and learned about the process of Community Based Participatory Research. They also discussed methods for organizing/facilitating focus groups and methods to analyze qualitative data, which are essential for understanding community needs and opinions.

This training is designed for a diverse group, including researchers, clinicians, educators, and healthcare administrators who want to improve health outcomes. Attendees aim to implement community-based strategies that promote health equity in their work.

"The UAB CBPR training program taught me more about how CBRP can be used to promote health equity. I learned about future funding and mentorship opportunities in additional to practical tips about how to incorporate CBRP methods into Health Services Research studies. I am eager to use information that I learned from the CBPR Immersion Training to augment my ongoing and future research projects and the patients I am honored to partner with," says Kopecky.