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COMMUNITY CASE STUDY article

Front. Public Health

Sec. Public Health Education and Promotion

Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1622237

This article is part of the Research TopicCardiac RehabilitationView all 10 articles

Community-Based Participatory Design of a Decade: The FAITH! Cardiovascular Health and Wellness Program

Provisionally accepted
LaPrincess  BrewerLaPrincess Brewer1*Mathias  LalikaMathias Lalika2Ashley  N. KyalwaziAshley N. Kyalwazi3Monica  AlbertieMonica Albertie4Janice  BowieJanice Bowie5Ashya  Ashya Burgess BurgessAshya Ashya Burgess Burgess6Lora  E. BurkeLora E. Burke7Brian  ButaBrian Buta8Lisa  A. CooperLisa A. Cooper9Deidra  C. CrewsDeidra C. Crews9Chyke  A. DoubeniChyke A. Doubeni10Walé  ElegbedeWalé Elegbede11,12Jamia  EricksonJamia Erickson13Sarah  JenkinsSarah Jenkins14Jacquelyn  Johnson,Jacquelyn Johnson,15Clarence  JonesClarence Jones16Ashton  KrogmanAshton Krogman17Lainey  MoenLainey Moen17Michael  PalmerMichael Palmer18Christi  PattenChristi Patten19Sumedha  PenheiterSumedha Penheiter20Monisha  W. RichardMonisha W. Richard21Princess  TitusPrincess Titus22Sueling  SchardinSueling Schardin23Stanton  ShanedlingStanton Shanedling24Jeremy  R Van't HofJeremy R Van't Hof25David  WarnerDavid Warner19,26Jennifer  WeisJennifer Weis19Sharonne  N HayesSharonne N Hayes17
  • 1Mayo Clinic, Rochester, United States
  • 2Department of Cadiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Michigan, United States
  • 3Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
  • 4Center for Clinical and Translational Science, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, United States
  • 5Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, United States
  • 6Division of Hematology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, United States
  • 7School of Nursing, Department of Health and Community Systems, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, United States
  • 8Center on Aging and Health, Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, United States
  • 9Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, United States
  • 10Department of Family and Community Medicine, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, United States
  • 11Strategy Management Services, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, United States
  • 12National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Rochester, United States
  • 13Thrivent Financial, Incorporated, Rochester, United States
  • 14Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, Rochester, United States
  • 15Christ’s Church of the Jesus Hour, Rochester, United States
  • 16Hue-Man Partnership, Minneapolis, United States
  • 17Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, United States
  • 18Revival Home Health and Hospice, Baltimore, United States
  • 19Center for Clinical and Translational Science, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, United States
  • 20Strategy Operations, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, United States
  • 21The Linc, Minneapolis, United States
  • 22Appetite For Change, Minneapolis, United States
  • 23American Heart Association, Eagan, United States
  • 24Minnesota Department of Health, Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Unit, Minnesota, United States
  • 25Cardiovascular Division and Lillehei Heart Institute, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, United States
  • 26Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

The FAITH! (Fostering African-American Improvement in Total Health) Cardiovascular Health and Wellness Program is more than a decade-long community-based participatory research initiative aimed at addressing cardiovascular health disparities among African-Americans in Minnesota. Founded in 2013, the program employs a culturally tailored, community-driven approach by partnering with African-American faith communities to promote cardiovascular health through education, digital health tools, and multilevel interventions targeting the social determinants of health. Grounded in community-based participatory research principles, FAITH! prioritizes equitable academic-community partnerships, co-learning, community capacity building, and shared ownership in all aspects of research and implementation. The program’s exemplary innovations include the NIH-funded FAITH! Trial, a randomized clinical trial, testing a mobile health intervention (the FAITH! App) co-created with the African-American community, and the Techquity by FAITH! study. Techquity by FAITH! evaluates the effectiveness of a culturally relevant, community-informed mHealth intervention supported by a Digital Health Advocate network to improve overall cardiovascular health and digital health literacy. During its evolution, FAITH! has addressed emergent public health crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic, by adapting programming to provide emergency preparedness resources, health education, and vaccine outreach. Key outcomes include sustainable church-based health ministries, increased research participation, and successful translation of research into practice. The program has also contributed to research workforce development by mentoring and training diverse early-career scholars and community leaders in community-based participatory research and cardiovascular health equity research. Lessons learned highlight the transformative impact of community-based participatory research in building trust, facilitating culturally relevant dissemination, and sustaining health equity initiatives. The FAITH! model demonstrates a scalable, community-led strategy for advancing cardiovascular health in underserved populations and provides a blueprint for future initiatives aiming to reduce racial health disparities.

Keywords: Cardiovascular health, Community based participatory reaserch, Health Disparities, health equity, Social determinansts of health

Received: 02 May 2025; Accepted: 04 Aug 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Brewer, Lalika, Kyalwazi, Albertie, Bowie, Burgess, Burke, Buta, Cooper, Crews, Doubeni, Elegbede, Erickson, Jenkins, Johnson,, Jones, Krogman, Moen, Palmer, Patten, Penheiter, Richard, Titus, Schardin, Shanedling, Van't Hof, Warner, Weis and Hayes. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: LaPrincess Brewer, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, United States

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