2316 The extra-territorial translational team: Advances in
multi-faceted community engagement
Authors: Croisant Sharon A. , Anthony Amber L. , Prochaska John , Singleton Chantele , Kotarba Joseph A. 
Published: November 2018

OBJECTIVES: We developed the concept of the extra-territorial
translational team (ETTT) in 2014 as a more inclusive revision and
extension of the team science concept. Translational thinking
is largely marked by the perception of the team as a thing-like structure at the
center of the scientific activity. Collaboration accordingly involves bringing
external others (e.g., scientists, community members, and clinicians) into the
team through limited or dependent participation. The ETTT is intended to frame
the team as an idea: a schema for assembling and managing
relationships among otherwise disparate individuals with
vested interests in the problem at hand. Thus, the ETTT can be seen as a
process as well as an object. Our initial
focus was on the very successful SCI Café program
(where Science and Communities Interact) conducted through the Institute for
Translational Sciences and the Center for Translational Sciences Award at UTMB.
We found that by looking beyond the taken-for-granted features of translational
research teams, we are free to discover new ways of organizing research and
community engagement that are innovative yet productive. The major area of
growth, however, has been the Research, Education, And Community Health
Coalition (REACH). The purpose of the current study is to outline strategies for
inventorying and evaluating the emerging programs that are the major components
of REACH and the SCI Café and to suggest implications for the
extra-territorial translational team concept. METHODS/STUDY
POPULATION: The assessment of the extraterritorial team concept in REACH and SCI
Café is primary a process of qualitative content analysis. We use
semi-structured interviews with project leadership, observations of the actual
performance of the REACH teams, and the review of REACH and SCI Café
documents, for example, Quantitatively, we have conducted a Community Health
Needs Assessment (CHNA) to better understand community health and resource
needs. RESULTS: Both the SCI Café program and the REACH initiative
follow the principles of the ETTT concept for assembling and managing research
and community outreach. The following are several key principles shared by both
programs: (1) The importance of creative, applicable, and inclusive mission
statements: (a) REACH seeks to facilitate communication, collaborative research,
and service efforts between UTMB and Institute for Translational Sciences
investigators and Galveston County community leaders; (b) The SCI
Café hosts interactive dialogs that serve as a medium for priming,
organizing, communicating and strategizing among the individuals involved in
team science via community-based research projects. (2) Increasing scientific
and health literacy: (a) REACH seeks to increase literacy through both
short-term and long-term interactions; (b) The SCI Café focuses on
short-term yet intensive interaction through conversations among researchers,
clinicians, and the public. (3) Sharing timely scientific public health
information with the community: (a) REACH seeks information from community
leaders on relevant topics; (b) The SCI Café can mobilize quickly to
respond to timely topics by direct communication with a wide range of
stakeholders, academic as well as community based. (4) Sharing leadership with
the community: (a) REACH establishes formal relationships with 23 UTMB units and
39 broad-based, high impact Galveston County organizations. (b) The SCI
Café works primarily with “grass roots”
community-level groups and organizations. (5) Creating resources and strategies
for expansion: (a) REACH is working to expand its activities to other counties
in the Gulf Coast area of Texas (e.g., Brazoria and Matagorda Counties); (b) The
SCI Café is expanding its program to comfortable locations accessible
to local residents (e.g., schools and libraries). (6) The value of regular and
systematic scientific and evaluation: (a) REACH is conducting a Community Health
Needs Assessment (CHNA) that has already discovered major issues of relevance to
community leaders including mental health, vaccination rates, food security,
disaster preparedness, and caregiving. (b) The SCI Café conducts an
evaluation survey at the conclusion of every event to stay current with
participants interests and needs. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT:
(1) In order to maintain the ability to operate extra-territorially (i.e.,
beyond the safe organizational confines of the University), the 2 programs
discussed here must maintain a fluid team structure. Different projects require
different types of leadership, grass roots participation, university resources,
communications/public relations, etc. (2) The strategy of
accumulating and disseminating best practices appears to be one of the most
valuable products of the extra-territorial team. (a) REACH’s
“Offer and Ask” practice by which information of
university and community resources (skills and expertise) are shared makes
cooperation and shared leadership explicit. (b) The SCI
Café’s interactional strategies for encouraging and
enabling café participants to join the
discussion/conversation are wonderful ways to convert an otherwise
unidirectional lecture into a vibrant conversation. (3) Although the scope of
these 2 programs is quite different, the message from both is that the
principles of extra-territorial translational teams are application to all such
endeavors to improve scientific and health literacy.