The Stacked Community Engagement model: A practical model for developing community-engaged academic medical faculty. J Clin Transl Sci 2023;7(1):e36
Date
02/28/2023Pubmed ID
36845313Pubmed Central ID
PMC9947615DOI
10.1017/cts.2023.1Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85146306955 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 1 CitationAbstract
INTRODUCTION: There is an increasing recognition of the benefits of sustained community engagement (CE) that accrue to academic health centers and the communities they serve. However, the success and sustainability of CE projects rely on the efforts of individual faculty, learners, and community members, for whom CE efforts are typically added to their professional and personal priorities and responsibilities. This competition for time and resources between priorities and CE can discourage academic medical faculty from participating in CE activities. The Stacked Community Engagement model is proposed to synergize or "stack" responsibilities and goals onto the scaffolding of CE projects.
METHODS: We examined the literature and expert CE practitioner opinion to identify the challenges faced by community-engaged academic faculty and the key characteristics of CE projects that successfully align and integrate with the priorities of faculty, learners, and community members. We synthesized this information to develop the conceptual Stacked CE model for developing CE academic medical faculty, then illustrated the model in heterogeneous CE programs to explore its generalizability, validity, and robustness.
RESULTS: The Stacked CE model, when applied to a specific nutrition education program (The Food Doctors) and outreach program (StreetLife Communities), provided a practical framework for examining the sustained success of a partnership between Medical College of Wisconsin faculty and medical students and the community.
CONCLUSIONS: The Stacked CE model is a meaningful framework for developing community-engaged academic medical faculty. By identifying overlap and integrating CE into professional activities with intention, CE practitioners can benefit from the deeper connections and sustainability.
Author List
Johnston B, Ruffalo L, Nelson D, O'Connor S, Petterson E, Young SAuthors
Bryan Johnston MD Assistant Professor in the Family Medicine department at Medical College of WisconsinDavid A. Nelson PhD Professor in the Family Medicine department at Medical College of Wisconsin