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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.
RELEASE DATE:
Peer Review Study
This article discusses the challenges of contact tracing among people experiencing homelessness. It suggests combining the traditional person-based approaches to contact tracing with location-based contact tracing approaches when conducting investigations among unhoused individuals. Location-based approaches collect data on the places people have visited in the past 48 hours, rather than the individuals with whom they interacted. Facility-wide testing and resources can be provided in locations where someone accessed support services.
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.
RELEASE DATE:
Peer Review Study
This article identifies levels of vaccine hesitancy and acceptance among people experiencing homelessness. It gives public health practitioners information on ways to address the relatively higher levels of hesitancy among this population and encourages logistical barriers such as transportation to be addressed as part of a larger strategy.
Best Practices that show evidence of effectiveness in improving public health outcomes when implemented in multiple real-life settings, as indicated by achievement of aims consistent with the objectives of the activities.
RELEASE DATE:
Case Study, Peer Review Study
Practice strategy involves including unhoused peer ambassadors in outreach plans to encourage vaccination against Covid-19 in homeless encampments/shelters. Peer ambassadors were found to be effective in promoting vaccination among their peers. However, some concerns existed around the ethics of exploiting the trust unhoused PAs had with their communities, as well as apathy and frustration towards the academic and bureaucratic nature of the research study.
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.
RELEASE DATE:
Peer Review Study
This study develops a microsimulation model of COVID-19 transmission in a homeless shelter and calibrated it to data from surveys conducted during COVID-19 outbreaks in five homeless shelters in three US cities from March 28 to April 10, 2022. The study estimates the probability of averting a COVID-19 outbreak when an exposed individual is introduced into a representative homeless shelter of 250 residents and 50 staff over 30 days under different infection control strategies. The results show that within communities with high COVID-19 community incidence are unable to prevent a large outbreak, despite extensive infection control strategies. This study suggests a need for non-congregate housing in high-risk settings, is needed to avoid outbreaks within these settings.
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.
RELEASE DATE:
Peer Review Study
Members of many underserved communities have long seen worse health outcomes, and this has been exacerbated by COVID-19. This article describes certain strategies that health departments, hospitals, universities, service providers, and others have used to engage and partner with members of underserved communities. In Chicago, health departments, hospitals, service providers, and community organizations formed an alliance that met daily to coordinate services for people experiencing homelessness. The Navajo Nation partnered with health departments and hospitals to create a health command center to get aid to people, test and contact trace, and collect funding. An alliance in Albuquerque used community based participatory research (CBPR) to complete strategic planning regarding mitigating COVID-19 among people experiencing homelessness. Other cities also used CBPR or saw grassroots efforts to partner wit health departments to increase aid and funding to communities with the greatest need.
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.
RELEASE DATE:
Peer Review Study
This article describes the rapid scale-up of adolescent telehealth services at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Division of Adolescent Medicine. While the scale-up was partially effective in reaching some underserved populations (e.g., people living with HIV, people with substance use disorder, people living with mental illness), racial disparities in visit completion rates are concerning and would need to be addressed by sites replicating this intervention to avoid exacerbating health disparities. The practice strategy this article is focused on is adolescent telehealth services.
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.
RELEASE DATE:
Peer Review Study
This study estimated the avoided deaths and health-care use among people experiencing homelessness during the first wave of COVID-19 in England. The findings included outbreaks of COVID-19 in homeless settings can lead to high attack rate among people experiencing homelessness, even if the incidence remains low in the general population.
Best Practices that show evidence of effectiveness in improving public health outcomes when implemented in multiple real-life settings, as indicated by achievement of aims consistent with the objectives of the activities.
RELEASE DATE:
Peer Review Study
This article describes the approach and impact of the Stanford Flu Crew, a service learning program at Stanford University School of Medicine, where pre-clinical students provide vaccines to underserved populations in community settings. The article includes information on both program outcomes (i.e., the number of people vaccinated per year over a 4-year period) and student perceptions of learning outcomes achieved through this program.
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.
RELEASE DATE:
Peer Review Study
This article evaluated the use of Department of Veterans Affairs–issued video telehealth tablets to increase access to care among veterans experiencing homelessness. While tablet uptake was more common among some underserved sub-populations (veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and veterans experiencing homelessness in rural areas), other populations (Black veterans, veterans with substance use disorders, and veterans experiencing chronic housing instability) were less likely to use tablets, indicating mixed results from an equity perspective.
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.
RELEASE DATE:
Peer Review Study
The article presents strategies of how Durham County Department of Public Health operationalized equity into multiple phases of its COVID-19 response through infrastructure changes and how to apply these methods to future public health emergencies to better serve vulnerable populations. This response relied upon robust data collection of demographic data to identify inequities. Infrastructure changes included standing up multiple COVID-19 Task Forces (Homeless, Community, Food Security, African American) and Strike Teams (Long-Term Care Facility, Clusters) targeting vulnerable populations; placing testing sites in targeted locations; collaborating with multisector and community partners for feedback; and providing Health Ambassadors for in-person dissemination of COVID-19 information. The paper reviews results from these interventions and lessons learned.