Outreach, Recruitment, and Engagement

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ORE CORE - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT By coordinating all ADRC outreach, recruitment, and engagement, the ORE Core of the Shiley-Marcos Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (ADRC) addresses a broad mission that includes recruitment of subjects for the ADRC longitudinal cohort and for affiliated research studies, and support mechanisms targeting numerous sectors of the community through programs of outreach and engagement. Outreach programs focus primarily on 1) older adults, family members, and caregivers, 2) the lay public, 3) community partners, 4) Center staff and volunteers, 5) healthcare professionals, and 6) the research community. Engagement programs, primarily targeting older adults, their families and caregivers, include providing information about Alzheimer's disease and related disorders (ADRD) and increasing awareness of available support resources. Support programs are designed for individuals who are experiencing the challenges of living with dementia, including caregivers, with a goal of enhancing quality of life. The ORE Core also addresses the needs of those individuals (stakeholders) who are in a position to lessen the burden, such as extended family members and healthcare providers. There is significant overlap among the three ORE Core mandates in efforts to recruit and retain research participants and provide support and learning opportunities for subjects, family, and caregivers, as well as residents of the extended community. The latter includes a large Latino population in neighborhoods in San Diego County that provides numerous opportunities to increase diversity in our cohort. Recruitment benefits from two of our most successful efforts, 1) free memory screening offered to diverse populations of older adults in the community and 2) the large ADRC Registry populated by the ORE, Clinical, and Latino Cores to identify and track older adults who have agreed to be contacted for referral to ADRD studies. Decisions for registry inclusion are based on existing and proposed research studies at UCSD and affiliated institutions (e.g., co-local universities, San Diego VA, other Alzheimer's Disease Centers, national initiatives). We develop strategies (e.g., Currents newsletter) for the important goal of retaining research volunteers for ongoing participation. In order to maximize success in reaching, engaging, and recruiting all sectors of the community, we assess Outcomes that identify the value of each ORE Core initiative. We use the findings to improve these programs and, importantly, share their descriptions and outcomes with interested Alzheimer's Disease Centers, research professionals, and healthcare personnel.