# COMmunity Mistrust and Institutional Trustworthiness to advance health EQuity research (COMMIT-EQ)

> **NIH FDA U01** · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · 2022 · $1,000,000

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
This proposal responds to the FDA’s desire to advance racial and ethnic minority participation in
COVID-19/COVID-19 variant clinical trials and/or contribute to informing the continued
evaluation of the safety and efficacy of FDA approved products (therapeutics, diagnostics, and
vaccines) or products subject to EUAs/EUA expansion for the treatment, prevention, or
diagnosis of COVID-19 (RFA-FD-22-003). We are uniquely qualified to collaborate with the FDA
because of our decades of health disparities and health equity research, including identification
of factors associated with under-representation in clinical trials and research on community-
academic partnerships. During the COVID-19 pandemic, inconsistent and poorly delivered
communication by leading scientists and policy makers, and continued health inequities
experienced in the African American community, and Baltimore in particular, continue to
perpetuate the feelings of mistrust that reduces willingness to participate in clinical care and
research. To address these root causes, academic and other research institutions and health
care systems must shift their lens from one that focuses solely on changing behaviors among
underserved and vulnerable populations. Advancing health equity in COVID-19 clinical trials is
extremely challenging, yet achievable when activities are informed by community guided
research on barriers/factors as well as active and authentic partnerships with historically
underrepresented communities. Through our Community-Engaged Research (CEnR)
partnerships with an African American church, community pharmacy, and community advisory
board, our proposed study will co-develop an equity-focused toolkit of practical strategies and
resources to promote planning for incorporation of equity in clinical trial protocol development
and implementation.
In collaboration with community and community-based pharmacy partners, our Aims are:
Aim 1: Delineate which previously reported and emerging barriers and facilitators impact health
equity for African American participation in COVID-19 clinical trials research.
Aim 2: Codesign health equity-focused principles that support Community-Engaged Research
(CEnR) Partnerships to foster trial enrollment and include community organizations, such as
African American churches, community pharmacies, and research-intensive institutions.
Aim 3: Codevelop a toolkit to facilitate equity-focused COVID-19 clinical trial research
recruitment, retention, and implementation protocols.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10532066
- **Project number:** 1U01FD007563-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE
- **Principal Investigator:** CLAUDIA R0SE BAQUET
- **Activity code:** U01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** FDA
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $1,000,000
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-04-01 → 2024-03-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10532066

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10532066, COMmunity Mistrust and Institutional Trustworthiness to advance health EQuity research (COMMIT-EQ) (1U01FD007563-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10532066. Licensed CC0.

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