Community-Partnered Approaches to Enhance Chronic Kidney Disease Awareness, Prevention, and Early Intervention

Abstract

There is a need to increase community involvement in addressing the growing burden of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Community-partnered participatory research (CPPR) is a collaborative approach that equitably involves academic, community, and professional partners in research, and the development of shared goals and of interventional programs to attain these goals. We present a case study of the processes, strategies, and activities concerning the interface of World Kidney Day goals and community-academic partnerships using a CPPR model focused on CKD. We show that CPPR methods can be used to (1) bring together community and academic leaders around goal sharing and research agenda development, (2) convene a community/professional conference aimed at knowledge transfer and data collection among partners, and (3) develop workgroups from a diverse group of participants to collaborate in community partnered strategies to reduce the burden of CKD. Participants included health care professionals, patients, faith-based professionals, government employees and officials, academics, caregivers, and community members. Follow-up workgroups developed action plans to address shared concerns. Using CPPR practices and principles, we were able to incorporate World Kidney Day objectives with community-derived goals to develop a community-partnered infrastructure, shared objectives, and workgroups to reduce the burden of chronic kidney disease. © 2008 National Kidney Foundation, Inc.