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Emerging Practices that show potential to achieve desirable public health outcomes in a specific real-life setting and produce early results that are consistent with the objectives of the activities and thus indicate effectiveness.
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Other
The article discusses the challenges and frustrations surrounding Long COVID research in the United States. Despite substantial investments and numerous research efforts, progress in understanding and treating Long COVID has been slow and disappointing. Experts and patient advocates have criticized the research community for its focus on disease development rather than direct patient care, duplication of studies, and a lack of clinical trials. The authors propose a new hypothesis that Long COVID may be a form of post-infectious syndrome or chronic fatigue syndrome, suggesting that traditional biomedical research approaches may not yield meaningful results. Instead, they advocate for a shift towards health services research and measures that directly impact patients’ welfare, including prevention, improved prognosis, access to empathetic care, and quality of life issues. They emphasize the need for collaboration between researchers, patients, and advocacy groups to reset the research agenda effectively.
Emerging Practices that show potential to achieve desirable public health outcomes in a specific real-life setting and produce early results that are consistent with the objectives of the activities and thus indicate effectiveness.
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White Paper/Brief
Director of the Health Equity Core at Harvard Medical School, Professor Sprague Martinez has organized a team of partners to identify the impact of long COVID on Black and Latinx communities in Massachusetts and barriers they experience in accessing treatment. The project is part of the Massachusetts Consortium on Pathogen Readiness, which aims to address the challenges of COVID-19 and future pandemics. The Health Equity Core focuses on understanding the impact of long COVID on diverse communities, increasing access to treatment and resources, and influencing relevant policies. The team includes partners from various institutions and will emphasize community engagement, data collection, dissemination, and policy advocacy efforts.
Novel Practices that show potential to achieve desirable public health outcomes in a specific real-life setting and are in the process of generating evidence of effectiveness or may not yet be tested.
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Peer Review Study
This commentary describes the challenges faced by rural communities in addressing COVID-19, with a focus on the issues faced by southeastern US states. It also addresses how the COVID-19 Community Vulnerability Index (CCVI) may be used as a tool to identify communities at heightened risk for COVID-19 on the basis of 6 clearly defined indicators. The CCVI can help decision makers target resources where they are most needed. Stakeholders, including hospitals, health care centers, insurance providers, policy makers, community-based organizations, and faith-based organizations, should be included in planning and enlisted to help reach disadvantaged and marginalized communities. The coordination would be valuable in planning emergency response, identifying areas of greatest needs, developing culturally appropriate messaging, and disseminating information throughout the community.
Promising Practices that show evidence of effectiveness in improving public health outcomes in a specific real-life setting, as indicated by achievement of aims consistent with the objectives of the activities, and are suitable for adaptation by other communities.
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Summary Report/Recommendations
This article compared community health workers (CHWs) in Indiana and Texas based on the results of two research studies in order to 1) investigate the unique role of CHWs and their Spanish-speaking counterparts, promotores de salud, in rural communities and 2) understand how their advocacy efforts represent a central form of caregiving. An analysis was done of how CHWs connect structurally vulnerable clients in rural areas to resources, health education, and health and social services. CHWs and promotores de salud have acted as first responders to the needs of marginalized rural populations, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to health education and translation work, CHWs also play an important role in advocacy, bridging the gap between clients and community leaders. While informing clients of available resources, they empower the clients to advocate for their own needs in different settings. CHWs also have the ability to engage with stakeholders and policy makers in better addressing client needs.
Emerging Practices that show potential to achieve desirable public health outcomes in a specific real-life setting and produce early results that are consistent with the objectives of the activities and thus indicate effectiveness.
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Case Study, Peer Review Study
This was a randomized, quasi-experimental study of an intervention that was implemented among rural and urban populations to encourage online grocery shopping and more nutritious food purchases. The authors targeted rural counties with high poverty rates for recruitment. The results showed that online shopping can improve food shopping habits and accessibility.