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| Community
Advisory Board
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| The Tulane-LSU
Adult AIDS Clinical Trials Unit (Tulane-LSU ACTU) Community Advisory
Board (CAB) is an active network of approximately thirty (30) members
reflecting the diverse populations affected by HIV/AIDS in our region.
This team works in close communication with our local ACTU investigators
and staff to include the perspective of local patients with HIV disease
and their advocates in the implementation of the local Tulane-LSU ACTU
and the AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) research agenda. In other words,
the CAB lets the ACTU staff know what are the clinical research needs and
concerns of the local HIV-affected community.
Our CAB includes HIV-infected persons, past and current
HIV clinical trials participants, women, persons of African American
and Hispanic
As a member of the CAB, you will be expected to attend monthly meetings and serve on two committees. These committees are smaller focus groups of the CAB which concentrate on issues of importance to the CAB's mission. All members are expected to provide feedback regarding the various studies being offered through the AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) and under local consideration. Lists of active protocols as well as studies in early development are distributed to CAB members to help identify which of these studies are of the most interest to our community. The CAB prioritizes their selections and presents them to the local investigators who then, based on community feedback and available resources, determine which studies will be implemented locally. Once strong interest in a potential study has been identified, all members are asked to complete a detailed Protocol Evaluation Form.
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Two, CAB point persons (Chair
and Vice Chair), elected by members of the CAB, serve as the primary
contacts/liaison to the larger ACTG CAB network (CABs from the other
funded ACTG sites) and the
ACTG's Community Constituency Group(CCG). The CCG is an advisory group of community members who fully participate in the setting of ACTG research priorities and in making HIV/AIDS clinical trials more accessible to all people impacted by HIV infection. CCG members serve on all Committees of the AIDS Clinical Trials Group. Membership to the CCG is competitive. For more information on becoming a CCG member, please contact: Attn: Julia
Ortega
The CAB point person(s) work closely with the ACTU staff CAB Coordinator, (CAB Coordinator) to help facilitate the local CAB meetings, assist in the development of the CAB's meeting agenda, participate in conference calls, bring issues of concern received from the community, other CABs or the CCG, to the attention of the ACTU, attend the national ACTG meetings to network with other CABs and the CCG and report back information of importance. Please direct any questions regarding CAB membership/activities
to:
COMMUNITY CONSTITUENCY GROUP What is the
CCG?
What does CCG membership mean? All CCG members are volunteers and are not paid for serving on the CCG. However, the costs of travel, housing and meals associated with attending ACTG meetings are covered. Members commit to a term of no less than two years, and no member shall serve more than three years. Members participate on the scientific core committees and working groups of the ACTG, which communicate through mailings and FAXes, sessions at the ACTG meetings, and telephone conference calls. CCG members are required to attend all ACTG meetings (usually 2 per year, in Washington D.C.), submit a report on their core committees and the CCG. CCG members are also expected to participate in their
local ACTG Community Advisory Board(s) (CAB). It is recognized that
some individuals may not be able to participate in a CAB due to
lack of transportation, lack of a local site, or other barriers.
The AIDS Clinical Trials Group conducts clinical trials at hospitals across the country and in Puerto Rico to study treatments for HIV/AIDS. The ACTG focuses on treatment research -- with the exception of trials seeking to prevent HIV transmission from mother to infant, it does not engage in any prevention research. While some members of the CCG come to the CCG with significant knowledge about HIV/AIDS treatment and research issues, the CCG has developed educational materials for new members to help get "up to speed" on these issues. To apply to the CCG, please send or fax a resume and/or
detailed cover letters summarizing relevant experience. If
you have submitted an application previously, please resubmit
it if you still wish to be considered.
Julia Ortega, Resource Specialist
The New Members Subcommittee of the CCG reviews all
applications in order to determine a list of appropriate candidates.
These candidates are then contacted by phone by CCG members
for a 20-30 minute interview. Subcommittee members report on all
candidates via conference calls and then vote to select new members
to fill available slots. The entire process from application
deadline to final new members selections takes approximately two months.
Applicants will receive written notification that their application
has been received, and will be notified at the end of the process if they
have or have not been selected for the CCG. As there are usually
many more qualified applicants than positions available on the CCG,
please consider re-applying if you are not selected. All information in
your application will be held in confidence and distributed only to CCG
members. If you have any questions about the CCG
or the application process, please direct them to the CCG New Members Subcommittee
Co-Chairs, Ruben Gamundi at (213) 993-1483, or Robert Preston at (612)
874-9495.
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