From the desk of the editor: Introducing Gaby Jacobs on healthcare community-based participatory action research (CBPR) project

Last week I wrote about politics of influence and designing for scale with our action research.  Over the next few weeks I will introduce new papers being published by the journal. By way of application of this concept of scale I will also reflect on how to “grow” the projects or reflect on what the project might imply at a "higher" level of influence.

Gaby Jacobs of Fontys University for Applied Sciences, The Netherlands writes from a context of a community-based participatory action research (CBPR) project entitled ‘Aspiring to Healthy Living in The Netherlands.’ The goal of the action research is to empower older people and generally to encourage healthy aging. The research, to be shared with audiences beyond the local stakeholders, draws from analyzing narratives from the participants. The focus of the article was on how academic and practical aims goals collide in CBPR. The contribution, using the ladder of Pretty, highlights different levels of participation in different project stages. Using theory of organizational learning, the paper offers insights for other teams to support consciously attending to keeping reflection and learning going within a context of external pressure.

From the point of view of growing to scale, Gaby’s work helps build the rapidly increasing repository of Healthcare/CBPR studies. This is important given that all over the Northern Hemisphere we grapple with how to transform a healthcare system for an aging population without bankrupting our economies. We expect more and intense interest in CPBR studies. Calling all graduate students: clearly metastudies of many studies, similar to Gaby’s are needed. Please find her work: http://arj.sagepub.com/content/early/2010/06/30/1476750310366041.abstract

And next week ... CBPR with pharmacists.