Background: Despite evidence pointing to health disparities impacting transgender and nonbinary (TNB) people, health research chronically underrepresents and excludes community participation in research design, implementation, and dissemination. Further, TNB participatory health research is often isolated within fields and geographic regions, providing few opportunities for convening. Supporting TNB-led PCOR/CER is critical to meeting TNB people’s unique needs, affirming their identities, and leading to improved health outcomes.

Proposed Solution to the Problem: In September 2021, Howard Brown will host the Midwest LGBTQ Health Symposium (MLHS), creating a TNB research track and community gathering called the Next STEP (Supporting TNB Engagement in PCOR) Convening. This symposium will allow patients, providers, researchers, and stakeholders to strengthen collaborations, leverage shared experience, and create joint solutions, resulting in a compendium of best practices for engaging TNB communities in PCOR and a dissemination guide.

Objectives:

• Short-term objectives: Plan and host a convening, ensuring national participation and stakeholder engagement, to identify and share best practices in PCOR engagement and dissemination of TNB research findings. 
• Long-term objectives: Create a compendium and dissemination guide to increase resources to conduct TNB PCOR and engagement across the 10 Steps of PCOR.

Activities: Hold the Next STEP Convening alongside MLHS in September 2021. A planning committee will develop agendas and curriculum. Day one will focus on learning about PCORI-funded TNB research projects, identifying issues with community engagement. Day two will focus on networking and discussion to identify strategies for engagement along the 10 Steps of PCOR. Following the convening, staff will compile findings into a compendium, hosting two webinars to disseminate findings and resources.

Projected Outcomes and Outputs:

• Short-term outcomes include: Increase knowledge of existing PCORI-funded projects in TNB health, exchange best practices for TNB community engagement, and share meaningful strategies for disseminating TNB health PCOR.
• Medium-term outcomes include: Host follow-up webinars and increase publicly available resources to continue conversation between researchers, healthcare providers, and TNB patients interested in participating in TNB health PCOR.
• Long-term outcomes include: Increase opportunities for collaboration between PCORI-funded TNB health research projects.

Patient and Stakeholder Engagement Plan: Centering “for us, by us” approaches that prioritize the experiences and voices of TNB people, the convening will engage stakeholders from three populations: TNB health researchers, healthcare providers, and TNB community members. Stakeholders will be present on the planning committee, in attendance at the convening, and will participate in resource development.

Project Collaborators: Jen Brown, Alliance for Research in Chicagoland Communities in Northwestern University’s Center for Community Health, will serve as a consultant. Partners include Whitman Walker Institute, LA LGBT Center, Legacy Community Health, Callen-Lorde Community Health Center, TransSolutions, LLC, Transgender Resource Center of New Mexico, Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, Trans Research and Advisory Network in the South, Texas Health Institute.