Health for Hearts United provides valuable insights into the role of Internal Champions (IC) in promoting health within church-based settings. ICs’ success depends not only on their personal traits and motivation but also on the community support and social networks that academic partners can help facilitate. Our findings suggest that, beyond their traditional roles, academic partners can significantly contribute to program success by providing emotional support, fostering a sense of belonging, and nurturing community relationships. Moving forward, future research should further explore how academic partners can integrate more deeply into community dynamics to promote long-term sustainability and engagement in church-based health interventions.
AllicockM.CampbellM. K.ValleC. G.CarrC.ResnicowK.GizliceZ. (2012). Evaluating the dissemination of body & soul, an evidence-based fruit and vegetable intake intervention: Challenges for dissemination and implementation research. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 44(6), 530–538.
2.
BernhartJ. A.DunnC. G.WilcoxS.SaundersR. P.SharpeP. A.StuckerJ. (2019). Church leaders’ barriers and facilitators before and after implementing a physical activity and nutrition intervention. Health Education Research, 34(2),188–199.
3.
BonawitzK.WetmoreM.HeislerM.DaltonV. K.DamschroderL. J.FormanJ.AllanK. R.MonizM. H. (2020). Champions in context: Which attributes matter for change efforts in healthcare?Implementation Science, IS, 15(1), 62.
4.
BunceA. E.GrußI.DavisJ. V.CowburnS.CohenD.OakleyJ.GoldR. (2020). Lessons learned about the effective operationalization of champions as an implementation strategy: Results from a qualitative process evaluation of a pragmatic trial. Implementation Science, 15(1), Article 1.
JullJ.GilesA.GrahamI. D. (2017). Community-based participatory research and integrated knowledge translation: Advancing the co-creation of knowledge. Implementation Science, 12(1), 150.
7.
LeyvaB.AllenJ. D.OspinoH.TomL. S.NegronR.BuesaR.TorresM. I. (2017). Enhancing capacity among faith-based organizations to implement evidence-based cancer control programs: A community-engaged approach. Translational Behavioral Medicine, 7(3), 517–528.
8.
MaxwellA. E.SantiferR.ChangL. C.GastonJ.CrespiC. M.Lucas-WrightA. (2019). Organizational readiness for wellness promotion—a survey of 100 African American church leaders in South Los Angeles. BMC Public Health, 19(1), Article 1.
9.
RalstonP. A.LemacksJ. L.WickramaK. A. S.Young-ClarkI.CocciaC.IlichJ. Z.HarrisC. M.HartC. B.BattleA. M.O’NealC. W. (2014). Reducing cardiovascular disease risk in mid-life and older African Americans: A church-based longitudinal intervention project at baseline. Contemporary Clinical Trials, 38, 69–68.
10.
RalstonP. A.WickramaK. A. S.CocciaC.LemacksJ. L.YoungI. M.IlichJ. Z. (2020). Health for hearts united longitudinal trial: Improving dietary behaviors in older African Americans. American Journal of Prevention Medicine, 58(3), 361–369.
11.
RalstonP. A.Young-ClarkI.CocciaC. (2017). The development of health for hearts united: A longitudinal church-based intervention to reduce cardiovascular risk in mid-life and older African Americans. Ethnicity and Disease, 27(1), 21–30.
12.
RalstonP. A.Young-ClarkI.WickramaK.CocciaC.LemacksJ. L.BattleA. M.HartC.IlichJ. Z. (2022). Dissemination trial for health for hearts united: Model development, preliminary outcomes and lessons learned. Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications, 29, 100979.
13.
SantosW. J.GrahamI. D.LalondeM.VarinM. D.SquiresJ. E. (2022). The effectiveness of champions in implementing innovations in health care: A systematic review. Implementation Science Communications, 3(1), 1.
14.
SmithJ.JohnsonA.WilliamsR. (2020). Exploring the lived experiences of caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer’s disease: A qualitative study. Journal of Aging Studies, 35(2), 145–163.
15.
WilcoxS.DayK. R.SaundersR. P.Jake-SchoffmanD. E.KaczynskiA. T.StuckerJ.DunnC. G.BernhartJ. A. (2022). The Faith, Activity, and Nutrition (FAN) dissemination and implementation study: Changes in and maintenance of organizational practices over 24 months in a statewide initiative. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 19, 23.
