Using Our Strengths: Establishing a Community-Academic Partnership to Tackle Menstrual Health Concerns in Philadelphia.

Abstract

Menstrual health is a secretive, stigmatized, and understudied topic in the United States. To begin addressing this stigma requires understanding menstrual communication patterns in the community; however, few studies have applied community-based participatory research to explore menstrual health stigma. To describe the team and lessons learned building a community-academic partnership aimed to explore menstrual health stigma and communication in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.Partnership: A menstrual health non-profit and a social-reproductive epidemiologist forged a community-academic partnership using a unique program that encourages partnerships between researchers and community organizations. Three lessons are described: 1) take time to build trust, 2) be patient and respectful navigating challenges and unforeseen difficulties, and 3) ensure equitable distribution of project resources and benefits. Our partnership accomplished impactful work by acknowledging the unique resources, skills, and networks that each partner possessed.