A Community-Based Participatory Research Internship for Native Students

American Indians (AI) are under-represented in the health professions and in medical research. Reasons attributed to this include socioeconomic and culture barriers, lack of educational opportunities, lack of AI mentors and role models, and lack of educational counseling. The American Indian Health Research and Education Alliance (AIHREA) developed a summer internship to provide health and medical research experience for AI students based on the principals of community based participatory research (CBPR). The internship supports the academic and career development of high school, undergraduate, and graduate students, and exposes them to opportunities in the health professions and medical research. The AIHREA Summer Internship program provides a unique research experience through its collaborations among an academic medical center, a community college, and tribal communities. Additionally, the internship offers social and cultural support often lacking for AI students, an emphasis on CBPR, and a focus on ethical research with sovereign AI nations.

Read the full-text, published in the Journal of Health Science and Education, here.