The MWCCS NCAB is an advisory committee comprised of study participants from each of the local CABs, as well as a facilitator, Principal Investigator (PI) and Project Director (PD) representatives, and NIH (National Institutes of Health) sponsoring agency representatives. NCAB representatives are active in all levels of the study, including participation on working group conference calls and at the biannual scientific Executive Committee (EC) meetings. In addition, the NCAB holds conference calls every other month and meets annually in person.
The purpose and mission of the NCAB is to provide the MWCCS community with relevant scientific, psychosocial, and political information regarding HIV-related topics.
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The Executive Committee asks the NCAB for feedback on the validity and practicality of proposed study protocols and forms. New study concept sheets and protocol changes are reviewed by the NCAB prior to implementation in the study.
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The NCAB develops strategies intended to encourage active participation in study visits and solicits feedback from participants about their research visits and healthcare priorities.
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NCAB members are true representatives of the MWCCS community and provide insight on how best to obtain valid information from participants, thus improving data quality
Overall, the National CAB functions to contribute to rich discussion about everything from ethics in MWCCS research objectives to the best ways to share results with networks for the greatest community impact.