Community Priority Index: utility, applicability and validation for priority setting in community-based participatory research

• Main Authors: Hamisu M. Salihu, Abraham A. Salinas-Miranda, Wei Wang, DeAnne Turner, Estrellita Lo Berry, Roger Zoorob
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: PAGEPress Publications 2015-07-01
• Series: Journal of Public Health Research
• Subjects: Priority setting; community-based participatory research; nominal group
• Online Access: http://www.jphres.org/index.php/jphres/article/view/443
• ISSN: 2279-9028; 2279-9036

<em>Background</em>. Providing practitioners with an intuitive measure for priority setting that can be combined with diverse data collection methods is a necessary step to foster accountability of the decision-making process in community settings. Yet, there is a lack of easy-to-use, but methodologically robust measures, that can be feasibly implemented for reliable decision-making in community settings. To address this important gap in community based participatory research (CBPR), the purpose of this study was to demonstrate the utility, applicability, and validation of a community priority index in a community-based participatory research setting. <br /><em>Design and Methods</em>. Mixed-method study that combined focus groups findings, nominal group technique with six key informants, and the generation of a Community Priority Index (CPI) that integrated community importance, changeability, and target populations. Bootstrapping and simulation were performed for validation. <br /><em>Results</em>. For pregnant mothers, the top three highly important and highly changeable priorities were: stress (CPI=0.85; 95%CI: 0.70, 1.00), lack of affection (CPI=0.87; 95%CI: 0.69, 1.00), and nutritional issues (CPI=0.78; 95%CI: 0.48, 1.00). For non-pregnant women, top priorities were: low health literacy (CPI=0.87; 95%CI: 0.69, 1.00), low educational attainment (CPI=0.78; 95%CI: 0.48, 1.00), and lack of self-esteem (CPI=0.72; 95%CI: 0.44, 1.00). For children and adolescents, the top three priorities were: obesity (CPI=0.88; 95%CI: 0.69, 1.00), low self-esteem (CPI=0.81; 95%CI: 0.69, 0.94), and negative attitudes toward education (CPI=0.75; 95%CI: 0.50, 0.94). <br /><em>Conclusions</em>. This study demonstrates the applicability of the CPI as a simple and intuitive measure for priority setting in CBPR.