Capacity for Change. 2006 Evaluation of the British Columbia Community Based HIV/AIDS Research Capacity Building Program.

This report presents the results of the first evaluation of the Community Based Research Capacity Building Program in BC. The purpose of the evaluation was to measure the progress of the BC CBR program in relation to work plans, the institutional environment in which the program functions, the needs of hte stakeholders that the program serves, and the outcomes of the activities of the Research Technical Assistant (RTA) since 2003. The evaluation shows that AIDS Service Organizations and other stakeholders are satisfied with the Program and consider the services of the RTA to be a valuable resource. The program and RTA have assisted organizations in developing research proposals, designing research activities, facilitating and simplifying research issues and tasks, and in understanding and integrating community based research into existing programs and activities. Suggestions for improvement included increased communication with stakeholders to help raise awareness and support for CBR activities, some of which the evaluation itself provided, to inform stakeholders of CBR results and funding opportunities, and a more proactive role of the RTA coordinating and supporting research activities including the acquisition of funding.