The microgrant approach could well be the future of public health messaging for diverse populations and a way to combat the erosion of trust that came with the pandemic’s politicization of public health.
Steven Sharma, left, takes COVID-19 shot from registered nurse Sherri Moore of PRN Healthcare at vaccination clinic in the parking of Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado on Thursday, September 22, 2022. When COVID-19 vaccines became available, Colorado public health officials initially relied on mass vaccination events publicized through Facebook, email and texts, and required Coloradans to book appointments online.
Over time, the disparities in vaccine rates in and around Denver narrowed, although it’s difficult to know how much to attribute to the community ambassador program, as the initiative has come to be known. The ambassador program was launched in 2020 as health officials prepared for the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, with a pilot campaign to encourage flu shots. Once COVID-19 vaccines became available,showing vaccination rates down to census tracts identified neighborhoods with low uptake. The partners could then reach out to community organizations with boots on the ground in those areas to tailor their outreach.
“I would hear about the COVID vaccine concerns from our ambassadors before I would ever hear them in the media, really, because they had that immediate connection to the community,” said Nicole Weber, senior program manager at the Colorado Health Institute. Because promotoras live in the communities they serve, they can quickly identify barriers and suggest strategies to overcome them. The collective, for example, persuaded health officials to shift the schedule for mobile vaccine clinics from daytime hours during the week to Friday from 5 p.m. until midnight. The shift allowed residents working hourly jobs with no time off to get their shots after work and have the weekend to recover from side effects.
Carlos Herrera, a project manager with the collective, said the model helps overcome immigrants’ mistrust of government agencies by partnering with organizations that know the specific needs of those communities.
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