Evaluating a Community-partnered Approach to Address Locally Relevant Determinants of Cancer Screening in New York City

Background: New York City (NYC) Cancer Outreach Network in Neighborhoods for Equity and Community Translation (CONNECT) aims to address determinants of cancer screening and access disparities in low-income NYC neighborhoods with high cancer burden. Objectives: NYC CONNECT community partners formed neighborhood action councils (NACs) and engaged in mixed-method formative research and an iterative consensus-building process to co-identify structural and social determinants of cancer screening. The NACs co-developed with health and academic partners community-level strategies to address structural determinants of health. The objective of this manuscript is to describe participatory processes to engage and support community partners in low-income and high poverty communities and the evaluation of their functioning within the context of a community–academic research partnership. Methods: NYC CONNECT partnership development is informed by trauma-informed community building and community-based participatory research principles. Our mixed-methods partnership evaluation included surveys, qualitative interviews, and speaking time in meetings as a proxy for engagement. Lessons Learned: Trauma-informed community building and community-based participatory research informed co-learning and consensus-building activities among the NACs. Identifying and prioritizing structural and social determinants of health strategies was a non-linear, iterative process that required multiple interactive activities (e.g., asset mapping, impact to effort matrix, and voting). Conclusion: Community engagement is a dynamic process that requires adapting to community partners’ goals and sharing decision-making power.