Massachusetts Alzheimer?s Disease Research Center: Outreach, Recruitment and Engagement Core The Outreach, Recruitment and Engagement (ORE) Core of the Massachusetts Alzheimer?s Disease Research Center (MADRC) has shifted its focus towards early detection and prevention while concentrating on the critical need for diversity within clinical trials and research studies. This mission aligns well with MADRC?s overall goals for understanding disease heterogeneity; as diversity across education, ethnicity and socio- economic strata affects not only the biology of Alzheimer?s Disease (AD) and related dementias (ADRD) but the clinical expression of disease as well. Only as we expand and diversify participation in AD/ADRD clinical research will we acquire new strategies to find a cure. The ORE core will meet these challenges by focusing its mission in several areas: We will marshal resources to meet the recruitment and retention needs of the MADRC Clinical Core and all MADRC affiliated research studies (Aim 1). We will work with the Clinical Core to increase the clinical and demographic diversity of the Research Cohort in clinical and community settings. We will also develop liaisons with local and national groups to increase public awareness about AD/ADRD dementias, particularly within underrepresented minority groups (Aim 2) and work to increase diversity in all our research studies. We intend to collaborate with city and state agencies fostering a Dementia Friendly environment to bring education about prevention, AD/ADRD resources and clinical trial opportunities to underserved and ethnically diverse communities. We also intend to work with the Neuropath core to educate the public about the value of brain donation and the lessons learned from these studies (Aim 3). We intend to develop new strategies to facilitate rapid enrollment into clinical trials by working with the Data and Clinical cores to build and maintain a registry of research ready participants (Aim 4) who agree to be contacted as clinical and research trials become available. We will build toward the future by developing a Rapid Diagnostic Clinic to facilitate earlier diagnosis and enrollment of participants into research studies and working with the Data Core to recruit from a BioBank EHR Database that will allow rapid recruitment of large or highly customizable samples (Aim 5). We will also provide customized education and support to PCP practitioners, faith-based ministers and geriatric specialists who are on the frontlines of dementia care. We will work with the REC to train fellows in cultural diversity and community engagement (Aim 6). The ORE core interfaces with all the MADRC cores by providing education to the public about clinical, biomarker and genetic studies and the value of brain donations. It supports the recruitment needs of all the MADRC cores and affiliated research studies. Only together will we find a cure for AD/ADRD before 2025.
