The Role of Community Advisory Boards (CABs) in Project Eban

OBJECTIVE:To describe the theoretical principles that guided the establishment of Project Ebanʼs Community Advisory Boards (CABs), their functions, and composition; the selection and recruitment processes; lessons learned; and recommendations on the use of CABs in multisite HIV clinical trial studies. METHODS:In the first year of Project Ebanʼs implementation, each of the 4 sites formed a local CAB. Member recruitment took place during the first 6 months of the study. On average, each siteʼs CAB consisted of 13-19 stakeholders, with a total of 62 members for the multisite study, including leaders of HIV/AIDS-related community-based organizations (CBOs), hospital-based HIV/AIDS service providers, HIV/AIDS network leaders in minority communities, CBOs that serve predominantly black communities, and consumers. RESULTS:Each of the CAB members has expressed a strong commitment to assisting in the conduct of the research. CABs are integral to the success of the study, and their input is highly respected and used to improve the quality of the research. CONCLUSIONS:This article highlights the importance of CABs in the conduct of HIV multisite clinical trials and their roles in making the study culturally congruent to meet the needs of the black community in dealing with the HIV epidemic.