Community

The Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC CTSI) provides community-based research training and technical assistance workshops, pairs USC faculty members with community partners, and disseminates discoveries broadly in the community for implementation.

Community Engaged Research

Collaborative partnerships offer substantial benefits for both researchers and the Southern California metropolis we serve. For researchers and communities, engaged research can:

  • speed discovery of innovative solutions to pressing, difficult  community health problems.
  • speed translation of research into meaningful health improvements – in our neighborhoods, Los Angeles overall, Southern California and other densely populated areas worldwide.
  • boost relevance of research questions, data and programs by creating and implementing them jointly with individuals and communities directly affected by a disease.
  • help researchers understand not only what a community’s health needs are, but what medical resources and other assets are available – or lacking.
  • help researchers understand the sustainability, dissemination, replication, and policy impact of their work.
  • offer a learning opportunity for everyone involved.
  • Researchers may be more able to recognize a community’s most urgent health needs, and to better understand how certain policies affect individuals and families.
  • Community members may be more supportive of a research effort when they fully understand, and are thoughtfully engaged with, its goals, processes and implications.