Abstract P364: A County Community Health Fair Served as a Strategy to Encourage Participation in Research Study

Abstract

Background: The voice of the community is powerful in suggesting strategies for engaging in research. Members of Oktibbeha and Panola County, Mississippi Advisory Boards affiliated with the Risks Underlying Rural Areas Longitudinal (RURAL) Study suggested that a health fair would spread the word throughout their communities about participating in the Study. The objective is to tell the story of how a County-wide community health fair can encourage those who attend to consider participating or not participating in the RURAL Study. The RURAL Study is an observational, population-based study focusing on heart, lung, blood and sleep disorders in 10 rural counties in four southern states: Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana and Mississippi. Methods: To engage the communities with the RURAL Study, Health Fairs were implemented in Panola and Oktibbeha Counties in Mississippi. Following the Health Fairs, Investigators conducted focus group interviews with four groups of attendees in each County to explore the success of the Health Fair and the attendees’ willingness to participate or not participate in the RURAL Study. Focus group interviewees were RURAL Study Community Advisory Board (CAB) members, local community engagement consultants, men, and participants at-large. Investigators conducted focus group interviews following the June 11, 2022, Oktibbeha County Community Health Fair and following the Panola County Community Health Fair held on April 29, 2023. Interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed. The transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Thirty-two individuals were interviewed representing Oktibbeha (17) and Panola (15) counties. Two main themes arose from the focus group interviews: giving and gathering information/getting the word out and enlightened awareness of requirements for and benefits of participation. Giving and gathering information/getting the word out included dissemination of information through promotional material, word of mouth, social media, flyers to churches, and presentations by the RURAL Study Principal Investigator. Attendees could gather information and be assisted in signing up to be a participant. Enlightened awareness of the requirements for and the benefits of participation included the realization that participation in the RURAL Study provides free screening, allows participants to keep up with their health, helps the individual participant and his/her kids, and benefits the community. Health Fair attendees who didn’t know that they could participate learned that they could. Conclusions: Providing detailed information through many channels and engaging the community can help to promote interest in a research study. A County Community Health Fair served as a community engagement strategy to encourage attendees to consider participating in the RURAL Study.