Partnering With Community Health Workers to Address COVID-19 Health Inequities: Experiences of the California Alliance Against COVID-19
Patricia Rodríguez Espinosa, Evelyn Vázquez, Mona AuYoung, Frank Zaldivar, Ann M. Cheney, Dara H. Sorkin, Robynn Zender, Claudia G. Corchado, Nancy J. Burke
Abstract
With funding from the National Institutes of Health’s Community Engagement Alliance, starting in fall 2020, 11 academic medical centers and 75 community partners came together as the California Alliance Against COVID-19 to address COVID-19 inequities in California. Using data from focus groups, statewide meetings, and a statewide partner survey, we describe how promotoras and community health workers (P/CHWs; n = 540) helped to promote access to COVID-19 information, testing, and vaccination. We highlight opportunities to promote health equity among other public health collaborators with a P/CHW model. (Am J Public Health. 2024;114(S1):S45–S49. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2023.307471 )