2 Interview Guide

OMB # 0925-0648

Exp., date 6/30/2024

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RCMI Program Retrospective Evaluation Interview Guides 

Introduction  

My name is ___, and I work for Ripple Effect. We are working with NIMHD to conduct an assessment of the Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) Program. Over the next few weeks, we will be speaking with, faculty, and staff at RCMI centers, and community members and external experts engaged with RCMI centers. The purpose of this interview is to capture your perceptions of RCMI outcomes related to minority health and health disparities research, 

investigators’ careers and research portfolios, institutional research capacity, and communities in sustainable research relationships. We are specifically interested in your perspective as a [stakeholder role] with the RCMI program. We know you are very busy, and we appreciate the time you are spending with us to share your expertise.   

This interview should take about 45-60 minutes and your participation is voluntary. Your name will not be attributed to any responses. Instead, responses will be aggregated, and summary reports will be generated.   

During this interview we will focus on the RCMI program since 2012, when it came under the leadership of NIMHD. Please answer the questions based on your experience with RCMI from 2012 to the present. We will not be discussing the RCMI program prior to 2012 in this evaluation.

We would also like to define a few key terms for the interviews. For this evaluation, “RCMI program” refers to the activities funded under the NIMHD RCMI funding mechanism. “RCMI centers” refers to implementation of the RCMI program at individual grantee institutions. “RCMI investigator” refers to any researcher receiving funding from RCMI in the last five years. “Early-stage investigator” refers to researchers who have completed their terminal research degree or medical residency within the last 10 years.

With your permission, these interviews will be audio recorded and transcribed to help the analysis so we can be sure to capture your answers to each question. When all of the interviews are complete, responses will be analyzed to inform recommendations for the RCMI program. This is your opportunity to have a voice in that process. 

Do you have any questions before we get started? Do we have your permission to record?

RCMI interview guide common questions for all stakeholders

Background

1. Describe your current and any previous role(s) you’ve had in relation to the RCMI program.

   1. How long have you been involved?

2. Based on your experience, what are the social, cultural, and financial factors that influence RCMI centers’ access to resources and researchers?

   1. Structural racism

   2. Institutional resources (e.g., funding, laboratory facilities, instrumentation)

   3. Investigator experience/training (e.g., grant writing, managing large research studies research time, teaching load)

Career Development and Workforce

3. Describe how the RCMI program has enhanced career opportunities for early-stage investigators and other faculty.

Research Outcomes

4. Describe the [RCMI program’/your institution’s RCMI] most important accomplishments to date in regard to:

   1. Basic biomedical research

   2. Behavioral and social research

   3. Clinical and health services research

   4. Community-engaged research

   5. Sources outside of peer-reviewed publications (e.g., community workshop, conference talks, social media, etc.)

5. Briefly highlight how minority health and health disparities research has been advanced through [RCMI program/your institution’s RCMI] research.

   1. How has [RCMI program/your institution’s RCMI] research contributed to reduced health disparities?

Research Infrastructure

6. How has the RCMI program supported [institutional/your institution’s] research capacity-building? (e.g., number and type of faculty hired/supported, research facilities, instrumentation, professional development opportunities, etc.)

7. What are some areas or opportunities for improving the RCMI program?

8. What are some areas or opportunities for improving institutional support for RCMI researchers?

Community Engagement

9. Describe how communities have benefited from engagement with the RCMI program.

Closing (Note: This will be the last question after the additional questions below)

10. Is there anything else about the RCMI program you would like to share with us, or anything we have missed? (Closing question)

1. Additional questions for Leaders at RCMI centers

Career Development and Workforce

1. Please describe the achievements of the RCMI program related to diversifying the biomedical workforce.

1. How does the RCMI program support recruitment and retention of investigators?

2. How does the RCMI program support recruitment and retention of investigators from underrepresented backgrounds?

Research Infrastructure

2. What is the research focus, if any, at your institution? (e.g., basic biomedical research, behavioral research, or clinical/health services research, etc.)

3. Describe the types of support provided to RCMI centers from:

1. NIMHD staff

2. Leaders at RCMI grantee institutions

4. What additional support do RCMI centers need from:

1. NIMHD staff

2. Leaders at RCMI grantee institutions

5. Describe how your institution balances RCMI faculty’s research and teaching responsibilities.

6. What role does the RCMI program play in enhancing your institution’s research capacity? (e.g., number and type of faculty, research facilities, instrumentation, etc.)

1. Describe how your institution matches RCMI program investments.

7. In what ways has the RCMI program award established a sustainable infrastructure at your institution?

Research Outcomes

8. How have RCMI program awards impacted the quality of biomedical, behavioral, social, and clinical research at your institution.

1. What role has the RCMI program played in conducting trans-disciplinary research at your institution?

2. Additional questions for RCMI PIs

Career Development and Workforce

1. Describe the RCMI program’s mentoring and training activities provided at your institution.

   1. What kind of formal mentorship and training are provided to support researchers?

   2. What kind of informal mentorship and training are provided to support researchers?

   3. How can the RCMI program improve mentorship and training experiences?

2. Describe how the RCMI pilot project funding benefits early-stage investigators.

   1. How could the pilot project funding be improved?

   2. How does the RCMI center support pilot project PIs?

3. Please describe the achievements of the RCMI program related to diversifying the biomedical workforce.

   1. How does the RCMI program support recruitment and retention of investigators?

   2. How does the RCMI program support recruitment and retention of investigators from underrepresented backgrounds?

Research Infrastructure

4. What is the research focus, if any, at your institution? (e.g., basic biomedical research, behavioral research, or clinical/health services research, etc.)

5. Describe the types of support provided to RCMI centers from:

1. NIMHD staff

2. Leaders at RCMI grantee institutions

3. RCMI coordinating center

6. What additional support do RCMI centers need from:

   1. NIMHD staff

   2. Leaders at RCMI grantee institutions

   3. RCMI coordinating center

5. Describe how your institution matches RCMI program investments.

6. Describe how your institution balances RCMI faculty’s research and teaching responsibilities.

1. Describe the types of support your center provides to RCMI investigators.

5. How does your institution’s implementation of the RCMI program vary from that of other institutions? (e.g., approach to community engagement, institutional matching for RCMI programs, institutional support for RCMI goals, etc.)

1. How do you explain the variation between grantees?

5. Describe the institutional support RCMI investigators receive in applying for funding (e.g., obtaining funding, reviewing and writing proposals, and competing and applying for new awards)?

1. What institutional support do RCMI investigators receive in implementing funding (e.g., purchasing equipment, paying staff)?

Research Outcomes

5. How have RCMI program awards impacted the quality of biomedical, behavioral, social, and clinical research at your institution.

1. What role has the RCMI program played in conducting trans-disciplinary research at your institution?

5. In what ways have RCMI investigators changed minority health and health disparity-related policy, programs, patient care, or teaching practices?

Community Engagement 

11. How would you describe the community relationships that your RCMI center has built through the community engagement core?

1. Describe the extent those relationships include reciprocity of research ideas and findings?  

2. Prompt: Please share some examples of that reciprocity from your experience. 

 

3. Additional questions for RCMI Core Directors

Career Development and Workforce

1. Please describe the achievements of the RCMI program related to diversifying the biomedical workforce.

1. How does the RCMI program support recruitment and retention of investigators?

2. How does the RCMI program support recruitment and retention of investigators from underrepresented backgrounds?

Research Infrastructure

2. What is the research focus, if any, at your institution? (e.g., basic biomedical research, behavioral research, or clinical/health services research, etc.)

3. Describe the types of support provided to RCMI centers from:

1. NIMHD staff

2. Leaders at RCMI grantee institutions

3. RCMI coordinating center

4. Describe additional support RCMI centers need from:

1. NIMHD staff

2. Leaders at RCMI grantee institutions

3. RCMI coordinating center

5. How do non-RCMI faculty and staff engage in RCMI activities and use RCMI facilities at your institution?

6. Describe external expert involvement with your RCMI center (e.g., scientific advisory board, external mentors of ESI, etc.).

Research Outcomes

7. How have RCMI program awards impacted the quality of biomedical, behavioral, social, and clinical research at your institution.

1. What role has the RCMI program played in conducting trans-disciplinary research at your institution?

8. In what ways have RCMI investigators changed minority health and health disparity-related policy, programs, patient care, or teaching practices?

Community Engagement

9. How would you describe the community relationships that your RCMI center has built through the community engagement core?

   1. Describe the reciprocity of research ideas and findings in those relationships.

2. Prompt: Please share some examples of that reciprocity from your experience.

10. How does your RCMI center engage the Community Advisory Board?

1. How does the Community Advisory Board benefit your RCMI center?

2. What are the challenges of maintaining the Community Advisory Board?

3. Are there ways to better engage the CABs?

11. Describe how communities have benefited from engagement with the RCMI program.

1. How is community defined by your RCMI center?

For the Community Engagement Core director only:

12. Describe the structure, format, and frequency of the CAB meetings?

1. What about the CAB meetings could be improved, if anything?

13. How does the CAB benefit your local RCMI center?

1. Are there ways to better engage the CAB?

For the Recruitment Core director only:

14. Please describe general faculty recruitment challenges

1. Are there unique challenges encountered by the RCMI Recruitment Core?

4. Additional questions for RCMI Faculty

Collaborations

1. How do RCMI centers collaborate with each other?

1. Describe how these collaborations further your institution's RCMI program goals.

2. How are knowledge and experience shared between your institution and other RCMI centers?

3. What opportunities do you see, if any, for NIH to facilitate these collaborations?

2. Describe collaborations between your institution and community partners.

1. How would you describe the quality of those collaborations?

2. What are the major accomplishments resulting from these collaborations?

3. Describe the sustainability of community collaborations.

Career Development and Workforce

3. Describe the RCMI program’s mentoring and training activities provided at your institution.

1. What kind of formal mentorship and training are provided to support researchers?

2. What kind of informal mentorship and training are provided to support researchers?

3. How can the RCMI program improve mentorship and training experiences?

Research Infrastructure

4. In what ways have RCMI investigators developed or adapted research designs or methodologies?

1. What additional research resources have been created through the RCMI program (e.g., consulting services, information dissemination models, etc.)?

2. What new programs have been developed through RCMI awards (e.g., training community members on research methods or needs assessments)?

5. What role has the RCMI program played in conducting trans-disciplinary research at your institution?

6. Describe how your institution balances RCMI faculty’s research and teaching responsibilities. (7c)

1. Describe the types of support your center provides to RCMI investigators.

5. Describe the institutional support RCMI investigators receive in applying for funding (e.g., obtaining funding, reviewing and writing proposals, and competing and applying for new awards)?

1. What institutional support do RCMI investigators receive in implementing the funding (e.g., purchasing equipment, paying staff, etc.)?

Research Outcomes

5. Briefly highlight how minority health and health disparities research has been advanced through research at your center.

   1. What research has your center contributed to reduced health disparities?

6. In what ways have RCMI investigators changed minority health and health disparity-related policy, programs, patient care, or teaching practices?

Community Engagement

5. Describe how your center collaborates with community members to disseminate research findings.

5. Additional questions for RCMI Staff

Research Infrastructure

1. What is the research focus, if any, at your institution? (e.g., basic biomedical research, behavioral research, or clinical/health services research, etc.)

2. How do non-RCMI faculty and staff engage in RCMI activities and use RCMI facilities at your institution?

3. Describe the types of support provided to RCMI centers from:

1. NIMHD staff

2. Leaders at RCMI grantee institutions

3. RCMI coordinating center

4. Describe additional support RCMI centers need from:

1. NIMHD staff

2. Leaders at RCMI grantee institutions

3. RCMI coordinating center

5. Describe external expert involvement with your RCMI center (e.g., scientific advisory board, external mentors of ESI, etc.).

Research Outcomes

6. In what ways have RCMI investigators changed minority health and health disparity-related policy, programs, patient care, or teaching practices?

Community Engagement

7. How does your RCMI center engage the Community Advisory Board?

1. How does the Community Advisory Board benefit your RCMI center?

2. What are the challenges of maintaining the Community Advisory Board?

3. Are there ways to better engage the CABs?

8. Describe how your center collaborates with community members to disseminate research findings.

   1. How do researchers at your institution use social media and other types of media to disseminate research findings?

   2. To what extent is your institution seen as a thought leader by these communities?

9. How would you describe the community relationships that your RCMI center has built through the community engagement core?

   1. Describe the reciprocity of research ideas and findings in those relationships.

   2. Prompt: Please share some examples of that reciprocity from your experience.

10. Describe how communities have benefited from engagement with the RCMI program.

1. How is community defined by your RCMI center?

2. Describe the quality of presentations and community events to discuss RCMI research.

6. Additional questions for Previous RCMI Faculty

Collaborations

1. How did your affiliation with RCMI facilitate research collaboration with non-RCMI researchers and institutions?

   1. Describe any difficulties you have experienced in establishing research collaborations.

   2. How can the RCMI program improve research collaborations?

Career Development and Workforce

2. How has your participation in the RCMI program enhanced your career?

   1. How could the RCMI program be improved to better support investigator career development?

3. Describe the RCMI program’s mentoring and training activities provided at your institution.

1. What kind of formal mentorship and training were provided to support researchers?

2. What kind of informal mentorship and training were provided to support researchers?

3. How can the RCMI program improve mentorship and training experiences?

4. Please describe the achievements of the RCMI program related to diversifying the biomedical workforce.

   1. How does the RCMI program support recruitment and retention of investigators?

   2. How does the RCMI program support recruitment and retention of investigators from underrepresented backgrounds?

Research Infrastructure

5. Briefly describe how RCMI investigators have developed or adapted research designs or methodologies.

1. What additional research resources have been created through the RCMI program (e.g., consulting services, information dissemination models, etc.)?

2. What new programs have been developed through RCMI awards (e.g., training community members on research methods or needs assessments)?

5. Describe how your previous RCMI institution balanced RCMI faculty’s research and teaching responsibilities.

1. Describe the types of support your center provided to RCMI investigators.

5. Describe external expert involvement with your RCMI center (e.g., scientific advisory board, external mentors of ESI, etc.).