May 2025

 Research is often designed to address issues affecting the well-being of specific groups of people and has a community focus. The groups of people could be affiliated by geographic proximity, special interests, ethnicity, social status, or economic status.   Such research may be referred to as Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) and would involve a research topic of importance to either a broad-based a community or a specific identified subset of an identified community.  Researchers who wish to conduct research to address community issues should consider whether the research plan would benefit from informal or formal community consultation or input.

There are existing community groups with which JHM researchers have established working relationships when planning new research protocols. Such relationships should be mentioned in the protocol when submitted for JHM IRB review.  In cases where research teams have not established such relationships, there are several options available for community input and guidance. 

Community Research Advisory Council (C-RAC)

The Johns Hopkins Institute for Clinical and Translational Research formed a Community Research Advisory Council (C-RAC).  The mission of C-RAC is to help ensure that research conducted by Hopkins and its partners is relevant and applicable to the needs and interests of patients, families, and residents of Baltimore City and surrounding counties. C-RAC seeks to improve transparency in the research process by creating structured opportunities for residents to share insights on local health topics. The C-RAC offers guidance to study teams regarding local considerations that may affect participation or understanding. Teams can request feedback before initiating a study or ask for suggestions on how to communicate results more effectively to the public. Community Research Advisory Board (CRAB)

At Johns Hopkins All Childrens Hospital, the Community Research Advisory Board (CRAB) is available to provide guidance and support to research teams. The CRAB has the following goals:

1. Help assure community-impact assessment and community input on the design and monitoring of our community-based research and/or research that potentially substantively impacts the local and regional community beyond the our campus. 
2. Monitor community impact of our research, via review of annual community impact reports provided by our researchers conducting studies that are either community-based or which have been assessed to have potential substantive impact on the local and regional community beyond our campus
3. Inform the Research Council and the Advocacy Council of any concerns re: the manner in which researchers are addressing perceived or actual community impact, as well as any concerns re: community response to our research.

Centrol Sol

Centro Sol is partnered with Johns Hopkins University and the organization’s faculty are members of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.  Research at Centro SOL is driven by the unique health issues faced by the Latinx population in Baltimore and beyond.

Centro SOL offers translation services and broader research consultation support. Research Consultation Services include material review, study planning, participant recruitment, and study staff recruitment.

The JHM IRB review process will include an assessment of whether the application has a community-based research focus.  The application should address the relationship between researchers and community members, any individual and group considerations used in developing the protocol, any plan to provide data and results to the community at the completion of a study, and whether community consultation has been or will be obtained.  In cases where the researchers believe community input is not essential, the application should provide the rationale for the decision.  The JHM IRBs may determine that an application does or does not require either additional community input or request that an application that did not have such input be discussed with a community group.  The JHM IRB may recommend or require that research teams secure a formal community consult as part of its review process.