PaTH to partnership in stakeholder-engaged research: A framework for stakeholder engagement in the PaTH to Health Diabetes study

Engaging a diverse stakeholder group, including patients, clinicians, policy makers, and leadership from national professional organizations as partners in research supports the pursuit of patient-centered outcomes. Utilizing the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research (PCOR) Engagement Principles and applying adult learning theories to training opportunities can enhance stakeholder-investigator collaborations. Regularly scheduled study meetings with stakeholders can help streamline communication, offer a platform for stakeholder voices to be shared, and increase study productivity. Ongoing engagement evaluations provide an important opportunity to assess engagement activities and improve processes moving forward. Benefits of a robust patient partner and stakeholder body extend beyond the study's objectives and translate into the creation of larger networks where resources are shared and patient-centeredness is enhanced.

Engaging a Community Leader to Enhance Preparation for In-Depth Interviews With Community Members

In-depth interviews allow for rich exploration of stakeholders' experiences. Preparation for in-depth interviews generally consists of literature reviews and researchers' review of their own culture and understanding of a topic. We supplemented these strategies with serial "ethnographic interviews" with a single community leader to enhance our preparation for community-based in-depth interviews with Latina, immigrant, Spanish-speaking mothers and to facilitate stakeholder engagement in a research project. After an extensive literature review, we conducted a series of four 1-hour interviews with a key informant in preparation for individual in-depth interviews with 12 parents. The ethnographic interviews with the community leader provided insight into environmental context, cultural categories, and stakeholder priorities, which helped shape the research question, in-depth interview guide, sampling strategy, and interpretive analytic process. We found that ethnographic interviews can provide critical insights for preparing in-depth interview guides and can enhance the information gained while facilitating meaningful stakeholder engagement.

The science of stakeholder engagement in research: classification, implementation, and evaluation

In this commentary, we discuss the science of stakeholder engagement in research. We propose a classification system with definitions to determine where projects lie on the stakeholder engagement continuum. We discuss the key elements of implementation and evaluation of stakeholder engagement in research posing key questions to consider when doing this work. We commend and critique the work of Hamilton et al. in their multilevel stakeholder engagement in a VA implementation trial of evidence-based quality improvement in women's health primary care. We also discuss the need for more work in this area to enhance the science of stakeholder engagement in research.