Participants

• All screened participants who meet inclusion criteria will be invited to participate in the HoPeNET study.
• Contact the study staff to determine if you are eligible to participate.
• Eligibility screening can occur through telephone, or in person.
• All participants will receive a copy of the study consent prior to signing the consent to participate.

The two main groups of potential participants for the HoPeNet CAB are:

1. Investigators from either Howard University or the National Institutes of Health Intramural Research Program (HoPeNET investigator members)
2. African-American adults living in the Washington D.C. area. (HoPeNET community members)

Inclusion criteria for HoPeNET CAB community members:

1.  Self-identify as racial minority
2.  At least 18 years of age at the time of screening
3.  Live within the Washington, D.C. area (Washington, D.C.; Suburban  Maryland or Virginia)

Exclusion criteria for HoPeNET CAB community members:

1. Community members who serves as a focus group co-facilitator

Inclusion criteria for HoPeNET CAB Howard University or NIH Investigators are as follows:

1. Howard University clinical research investigator or National Institutes of Health clinical research investigators defined as principal investigators or associate investigators
2. Investigator of a disease specific observational or intervention protocol
   Examples of specific diseases include, but are not limited to:
   i. myocardial infarction and stroke
   ii. neurodegenerative diseases
   iii. hematology/oncology
   iv. pulmonary diseases
   v. rheumatology (i.e., giant cell arteritis, rheumatoid arthritis
3. At the time of screening, a disease specific protocol is in conceptual phase, proposal phase, pre-recruitment, or active recruitment

Exclusion criteria for HoPeNET Howard University or NIH Investigators are as follow:

1. Investigator for a healthy volunteer study
2. Investigator for a protocol that is closed or not actively recruiting
3. Investigator who serves as a focus group co-facilitator

For the HoPeNET Presenters, there are two main groups of potential participants:

1. HoPeNET Presenter Investigators
2. HoPeNET Presenter Community Members

Inclusion criteria for HoPeNET Presenter Community Members are:

1. Be a part of a community organization within the Washington, DC area with interests or programs that are disease focused

Inclusion criteria for HoPeNET Presenter Investigators are:

1. Howard University clinical research investigator or National Institutes of Health clinical research investigators defined as principal investigators or associate investigators
2. Investigator of a disease specific observational or intervention protocol
   Examples of specific diseases include, but are not limited to:
   vi. myocardial infarction and stroke
   vii. neurodegenerative diseases
   viii. hematology/oncology
   ix. pulmonary diseases
   x. rheumatology (i.e., giant cell arteritis, rheumatoid arthritis
3. At the time of screening, have a disease specific protocol that is in the conceptual phase, proposal phase, pre-recruitment, or active recruitment

Exclusion criteria for HoPeNET Presenter investigators and community members are:

1. Not a participant in the HoPeNET CAB
2.  Not a co-facilitator in the group-based activity (Phase 1, Part 1)

Phase 1:

• Complete a pre-participation survey and a 1-on-1 interview with a member of the research team.
• Participate in focus group activity to identify group-based barriers and facilitators to clinical trial participation. The premise for the use of the focus groups is that healthcare and health equity issues are based on linked systems and that each group’s and each person’s perceptions of barriers is thus related and interconnected.

Phase 2:

• Receive online training overiew of Community-based participatory research.
• Attend HoPeNET CAB bi-monthly meetings for 12 months. These meetings will include presentations from non-HoPeNET investigators and non-HoPeNET community members who will present on specific disease focus areas from ongoing protocol or community health projects.
• Provide feedback on ways to engage minorities in their protocols/programs or to engage researchers in the community projects.

Phase 2:

• Present your upcoming or current clinical trial study overview to CAB members.
• Receive feedback from the multi-stakeholder CAB members.