Partnering to collect health services and public health data in hard-to-reach communities: a community-based participatory research approach for collecting community health data.

BACKGROUND: Community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches are increasingly used in behavioral studies but also may allow public health and health services researchers to study determinants of health in hard-to-reach communities for whom existing data are missing. OBJECTIVES: We describe our experience with a CBPR project in diverse communities of limited English proficient minorities. METHODS: The process included relationship building, recognition of community needs, resource investment by community and academic partners, and shared decision-making. Community-driven implementation, academic-driven analysis, and joint reporting took advantage of diverse layers of expertise. RESULTS/LESSONS LEARNED: We mobilized eighteen community interviewers, involved researchers from three institutions, and collected public health/health services data from 525 adults in seven weeks using a 117-item survey in nine languages. CONCLUSION: A CBPR approach can make the process of collecting public health and health services data in hard-to-reach communities not only viable, but also highly successful.