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Insiders and Outsiders: A Case Study of Fostering Research Partnerships Between Academic Health Centers and Corrections Institutions

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Broadly Engaged Team Science in Clinical and Translational Research

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Abstract

Hepatitis C is a blood-borne viral infection which can lead to liver disease and death. In 2013, an effective, well-tolerated, short-course oral treatment for hepatitis C was approved by the FDA. Despite widespread dissemination of curative hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment in the community, HCV treatment in the corrections system has lagged behind with only 1% of people infected with HCV who are incarcerated in prisons and jails receiving treatment. A literature review revealed that most of the discussions about increasing HCV testing and treatment access in jails did not adequately reflect the views of crucial stakeholders—county sheriffs and correctional administrators. In this chapter, we discuss the development of partnerships with correctional administrators and the successful award of funding aimed at improving HCV testing and treatment access for correctional populations. We also describe the Stakeholder Framework we used in our research, as well as the lessons we learned in gathering these different perspectives.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Merriam Webster defines prisons as “an institution (such as one under state jurisdiction) for confinement of persons convicted of serious crimes” and jail is “such a place under the jurisdiction of a local government (such as a county) for the confinement of persons awaiting trial or those convicted of minor crimes.”

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA

    Alysse G. Wurcel, Julia Zubiago, Deirdre J. Burke & Amy LeClair

  2. Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute;, Boston, MA, USA

    Karen M. Freund

  3. Department of Medicine; Tufts Medical Center and Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA

    Karen M. Freund

  4. University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA

    Stephenie Lemon

  5. Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA

    Curt Beckwith

  6. The Miriam Hospital, Providence, RI, USA

    Curt Beckwith

  7. Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute; Division of Clinical Decision Making, Department of Medicine, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA

    John B. Wong

  8. RAND Corporation, Boston, MA, USA; Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute, Boston, MA, USA

    Thomas W. Concannon

Authors
  1. Alysse G. Wurcel
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  2. Julia Zubiago
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  3. Deirdre J. Burke
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  4. Karen M. Freund
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  6. Curt Beckwith
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  7. John B. Wong
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  9. Thomas W. Concannon
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Alysse G. Wurcel .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA

    Debra Lerner

  2. Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA

    Marisha E. Palm

  3. RAND Corporation, Boston, MA, USA

    Thomas W. Concannon

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Wurcel, A.G. et al. (2022). Insiders and Outsiders: A Case Study of Fostering Research Partnerships Between Academic Health Centers and Corrections Institutions. In: Lerner, D., Palm, M.E., Concannon, T.W. (eds) Broadly Engaged Team Science in Clinical and Translational Research. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-83028-1_14

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