title: Evaluating community engagement in an academic medical center.
abstract: From the perspective of academic medical centers (AMCs), community engagement is a collaborative process of working toward mutually defined goals to improve the community's health, and involves partnerships between AMCs, individuals, and entities representing the surrounding community. AMCs increasingly recognize the importance of community engagement, and recent programs such as Prevention Research Centers and Clinical and Translational Science Awards have highlighted community engagement activities. However, there is no standard or accepted metric for evaluating AMCs' performance and impact of community engagement activities.In this article, the authors present a framework for evaluating AMCs' community engagement activities. The framework includes broad goals and specific activities within each goal, wherein goals and activities are evaluated using a health services research framework consisting of structure, process, and outcome criteria. To illustrate how to use this community engagement evaluation framework, the authors present specific community engagement goals and activities of the University of Rochester Medical Center to (1) improve the health of the community served by the AMC; (2) increase the AMC's capacity for community engagement; and (3) increase generalizable knowledge and practices in community engagement and public health.Using a structure-process-outcomes framework, a multidisciplinary team should regularly evaluate an AMC's community engagement program with the purpose of measurably improving the performance of the AMC and the health of its surrounding community.
authors.affiliation: Dr. Szilagyi is professor of pediatrics and chief, Division of General Pediatrics, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York. Dr. Shone is associate professor, holding appointments in pediatrics, clinical nursing, and the Center for Community Health, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York. Dr. Dozier is associate professor of public health sciences and clinical nursing, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York. Ms. Newton is director of community health partnerships, Center for Community Health, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York. Dr. Green is director of policy and education, Center for Community Health, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York. Dr. Bennett is professor of medicine and public health sciences, director, Center for Community Health, and director of community engagement, Clinical and Translational Science Institute, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York.
authors.forename: Peter G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Szilagyi
authors.forename: Laura P
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Shone
authors.forename: Ann M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Dozier
authors.forename: Gail L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Newton
authors.forename: Theresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Green
authors.forename: Nancy M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Bennett
mesh_terms: D000046:Academic Medical Centers / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003153:Community Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003159:Community-Institutional Relations; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007373:Interinstitutional Relations; D008297:Male; D009518:New York; D009936:Organizational Innovation; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D015397:Program Evaluation; D011634:Public Health; D058996:Quality Improvement; D014481:United States