Health Promotion Research and Development Unit of the Medical Research Council, South Africa.
SAHARA J. 2010 Oct;7(3):2-8. doi: 10.1080/17290376.2010.9724963.
In the light of the growing involvement of community advisory boards (CABs) in health research, this study presents empirical findings of the functions and operations of CABs in HIV/AIDS vaccine trials in South Africa. The individual and focus group interviews with CAB members, principal investigators, research staff, community educators, recruiters, ethics committee members, trial participants and South African AIDS Vaccine Initiative (SAAVI) staff members demonstrated differences in the respondents' perceptions of the roles and responsibilities of CABs. These findings question the roles of the CABs. Are they primarily there to serve and be accountable to the community, or to serve the accomplishment of the research objectives? Four emergent themes are discussed here: purpose; membership and representation; power and authority; sources of support and independence. The CABs' primary purpose carries significant implications for a wide range of issues regarding their functioning. The dual functions of advancing the research and protecting the community appear to be fraught with tension, and require careful reconsideration.
鉴于社区咨询委员会（CAB）越来越多地参与健康研究，本研究介绍了南非 HIV/AIDS 疫苗试验中 CAB 的功能和运作的实证发现。对 CAB 成员、主要研究者、研究人员、社区教育工作者、招募人员、伦理委员会成员、试验参与者和南非艾滋病疫苗倡议（SAAVI）工作人员进行的个人和焦点小组访谈表明，受访者对 CAB 角色和责任的看法存在差异。这些发现对 CAB 的角色提出了质疑。他们的主要职责是为社区服务并对其负责，还是为完成研究目标服务？本文讨论了四个新出现的主题：目的；成员和代表性；权力和权威；支持和独立性的来源。CAB 的主要目的对其运作的一系列广泛问题具有重要意义。推进研究和保护社区的双重功能似乎充满了紧张关系，需要仔细重新考虑。
