Feasibility of a virtual Facebook community platform for engagement on health research

Abstract

Introduction: Community engagement is important for advancing Clinical and Translational Science (CTS), but face-to-face engagement has limited reach and scale. We examined the feasibility of a novel virtual Facebook community platform for public engagement on health research statewide in Minnesota. Methods: The Facebook platform, MN Research Link, was evaluated from June 19, 2019 to June 30, 2020. Facebook advertisements and boosts were used to recruit followers. Content, based on prior formative work, included health research information and interactive postings (e.g., live interviews with researchers). Standard metrics obtained from Facebook analytics included participation (followers), content reach (views), and engagement (likes, shares, comments, clicks). Results: During the 12-month period, we acquired 1406 followers (31% rural residents), with a retention of followers of 99.7%. Mean number of views per month was 9379.83 (Mdn = 2791, range 724-41,510). Engagement metrics indicated a mean of 535.2 likes, shares, comments, and/or clicks per month (Mdn = 296.5, range 55-1535). The page continued to acquire new followers, but a slight decrease in engagement was observed in the final months after state COVID-19 mitigation strategies were implemented. Conclusion: As the complexity of CTS continues to grow, along with social distancing measures resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the availability of virtual digital platforms to reach and engage community stakeholders in conversations about health and research has increasing importance. Preliminary findings from this program evaluation indicate that a Facebook community platform is feasible to engage Minnesota residents in conversations around health and research topics. Future work will evaluate its potential for reach, scale, and sustainability.

Use of Live Community Events on Facebook to Share Health and Clinical Research Information With a Minnesota Statewide Community: Exploratory Study

“…To examine how live community events can promote CTS content, a Facebook page, MN Research Link , was developed by the Mayo Clinic (CCaTS) and the University of Minnesota (CTSI) National Institutes of Health–funded CTS Community Engagement Programs. MN Research Link was created to serve as a community platform for public engagement on health research statewide in Minnesota [ 1 ]. The project was deemed exempt by both the Mayo Clinic and University of Minnesota institutional review boards.…”

“…Evaluations of pre-existing Facebook communities involved with increasing community engagement and retention have been useful for future researchers interested in disseminating CTS content online [8][9][10]. In a previous program evaluation, our collaborative partnership between the Mayo Clinic (Clinic Center for Clinical and Translational Science [CCaTS]) and University of Minnesota's Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) evaluated the feasibility of a virtual statewide Facebook community platform to enhance public engagement with health research in Minnesota [1]. Our partnership found that Facebook can be used as a community platform and is feasible in engaging Minnesotan residents in conversations around health and research topics.…”

“…Community engagement is essential for advancing clinical and translational science (CTS) to improve public health [ 1 ]. Community engagement can make a substantial difference in health outcomes, strengthen the capacity to deal with disruptive public health events such as the COVID-19 pandemic, and empower communities [ 2 ].…”

“…Our partnership found that Facebook can be used as a community platform and is feasible in engaging Minnesotan residents in conversations around health and research topics. Nevertheless, additional research is needed to evaluate different types of Facebook posts and their potential to reach, engage, and retain community members with content posted on Facebook [ 1 ].…”

“…To address this question, a partnership between the Mayo Clinic CCaTS and University of Minnesota CTSI used Facebook’s tools to create the page Minnesota (MN) Research Link . MN Research Link ’s mission was to provide credible information for Minnesota residents (1400 followers; n=434, 31% rural residents) in conversations about health and research topics, including health communication, health education, psychology, behavioral science, epidemiology, public health, and COVID-19 [ 1 ]. Content and posts on MN Research Link included status updates, videos, images (eg, research articles related to health research), and interactive postings/events (eg, live interviews with researchers and polls) [ 1 ].…”