OneWorld Community Health Centers' (Omaha, NE) staff have stepped up to the front line to address COVID-19 through testing, giving vaccinations, and providing thorough follow-up care for their patients. As one staff member shares, “In terms of [public health], I have done more in this pandemic than I have done in my entire career.”
In response to COVID-19, OneWorld hired new teams for triage, lab notification, and screening. These COVID-19 service teams provide two weeks of follow-up care for patients who test positive, including help with food and housing.
To increase vaccinations, OneWorld has a promotora/Community Health Worker team that includes a Spanish-language translator. They hit the streets in late July of 2021 with vaccines in a special cooler so they could administer shots on the spot.
Joining the Health Center COVID-19 Vaccine Program has strengthened the impact of OneWorld’s outreach efforts. As of early August, OneWorld had administered almost 40,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines. Chief Executive Officer Andrea Skolkin shares that “having access to order vaccines has helped turn the tidal wave of disparity.”
Read more about OneWorld’s door-to-door vaccine effort.