Community research advisory councils (C-RAC) bring together community members with interest in research to support design, evaluation, and dissemination of research in the communities they represent. There are few ways for early career researchers, such as TL1 trainees, to develop skills in community-engaged research, and there are limited opportunities for C-RAC members to influence early career researchers. In our novel training collaboration, TL1 trainees presented their research projects to C-RAC members who provided feedback. We present on initial evidence of student learning and summarize lessons learned that TL1 programs and C-RACs can incorporate into future collaborations.
OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Lack of a vehicle and the distant location of supermarkets influence the ease with which people can shop for healthy foods. The aim of this qualitative study is to understand how transportation impacts food access and food purchases of Baltimore residents who do not own an automobile. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: The Lyft Grocery Access Program was piloted in Baltimore, MD from November 2019 through September 2020. Eligible households resided in Healthy Food Priority Areas, formerly known as food deserts, in south and west Baltimore and also did not own a vehicle. Enrolled households were offered discounted Lyft rides to select supermarkets. Participants for the present study will be purposively recruited via email and phone using contact information that was provided by enrolled households during the pilot program. Each in-depth interview will be conducted via Zoom and recorded, transcribed and analyzed for themes by two trained coders. Data collection and analysis will occur simultaneously. Data collection will cease once data saturation is reached and themes will be derived from the data. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: This study is in progress. Anticipated themes may relate to the food environment, transportation and food access. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Access to healthy foods is an important determinant of health, and how food access is impacted by broader aspects of daily living such as transportation will add to the food access literature. Findings may provide new insights that can help inform food policy and transportation planning in urban communities.
Objectives
Under-resourced neighborhoods in Baltimore, Maryland tend to have low healthy food availability. Residents of these neighborhoods often frequent corner stores, which are ubiquitous and primarily stock energy-dense foods and sugar-sweetened beverages. The Baltimore Urban food Distribution (BUD) trial aims to improve access to healthy foods by corner store owners and their customers. As part of the baseline assessment of BUD, this study aims to (1) measure the pre-intervention availability of promoted foods and beverages (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-sugar beverages) at participating corner stores; and (2) describe current promotional strategies used by participating corner store owners for healthy foods and beverages.
Methods
We expect to have baseline data from 38 corner stores recruited to participate in BUD by April 2022. During data collection, trained researchers will conduct in-depth interviews and a Store Environmental Checklist based on similar tools used in the previous B'more Healthy Communities for Kids (BHCK) trial. Subsequently, corner store Healthy Food Availability Index (HFAI) scores will be analyzed quantitatively using Stata, and qualitative data regarding promotional strategies will be analyzed using Atlas.ti.
Results
At the time BHCK was implemented, Baltimore corner stores had a low average HFAI score of 9.1 out of 28.5. Now, nearly a decade later, it is crucial to understand the current landscape of healthy food availability in order to inform the context in which BUD is intervening. Regarding promotional practices, we expect to see corner stores having a larger social media presence. A recent uptake of social media use among corner store owners could signify greater acceptance of technology, and a new medium for customer engagement and promotion of foods. Further quantitative and qualitative analyses will be completed by late Spring 2022.
Conclusions
The gap in healthy food availability among corner stores compared to supermarkets is well-documented, especially in under-resourced urban settings. Recent advances in the use of social media and greater acceptance of technology by small store owners is promising. Our findings here will help to inform the strategies undertaken by the BUD intervention in an upcoming randomized controlled trial.
Funding Sources
NHLBI, NIH, award number R34HL145368.
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