Published Article: Community-engaged research in translational science: Innovations to improve health in Appalachia

The Wake Forest Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) Program in Community-Engaged Research (PCER) published an important paper outlining proceedings from the Appalachian Translational Research Network (ATRN) Health Summit that was hosted in September 2020. Northwest Area Health Education Center partnered to provide the Summit which brought together 141 attendees, making it a very successful virtual conference during the pandemic.

The ATRN Health Summit was hosted by the Wake Forest Clinical and Translational Science Institute and accredited for health professionals by Northwest Area Health Education Center (NWAHEC) of the Wake Forest School of Medicine.

The article, Community-engaged research in translational science: Innovations to improve health in Appalachia, has now been published as Open Access (OA) in Journal of Clinical and Translational Science!

You can view the full article at https://www.doi.org/10.1017/cts.2021.862

Abstract
Health disparities between Appalachia and the rest of the country are widening. To address this, the Appalachian Translational Research Network (ATRN) organizes an annual ATRN Health Summit. The most recent Summit was held online September 22–23, 2020, and hosted by Wake Forest Clinical and Translational Science Institute in partnership with the Northwest Area Health Education Center. The Summit, titled “Community-Engaged Research in Translational Science: Innovations to Improve Health in Appalachia,” brought together a diverse group of 141 stakeholders from communities, academic institutions, and the National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) to highlight current research, identify innovative approaches to translational science and community-engaged research, develop cross-regional research partnerships, and establish and disseminate priorities for
future Appalachian-focused research. The Summit included three plenary presentations and 39 presentations within 12 concurrent breakout sessions. Here, we describe the Summit planning process and implementation, highlight some of the research presented, and outline nine emergent themes to guide future Appalachian-focused research.

The article highlights:

• An introduction on the Appalachian Region
  
• An overview of the ATRN Summit
  
• Exploring Influences on COVID-19 Messaging on Behavior in Virginia
  
• Social Determinants of Health: Families, Youth, and Race
  
• Substance Use: Collaboration, Partnership, and Prescribing
  
• Food Insecurity and Health: From Clinical Screening to Community Engagement
  
• Successes in Patient Navigation and Telemedicine to Improve Health and Well-Being in Populations Living in Appalachia
  
• Food Insecurity: Across Communities
  
• Innovative Methods to Translational Research
  
  

Congrats to the whole team on a job well done with the ATRN Summit and the published article!

View 2020 ATRN Health Summit Website