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Delivering COVID-19 Vaccine via Trusted Social Services: Program Evaluation Results from the Chicagoland CEAL Program

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Abstract

To describe the reach, implementation, and sustainability of COVID-19 vaccination programs delivered by social service community organizations. Five academic institutions in the Chicagoland CEAL (Community Engagement Alliance) program partnered with 17 community organizations from September 2021—April 2022. Interviews, community organizations program implementation tracking documents, and health department vaccination data were used to conduct the evaluation. A total of 269 events were held and 5,432 COVID-19 vaccines delivered from May 2021–April 2022. Strategies that worked best included offering vaccinations in community settings with flexible and reliable hours; pairing vaccinations with ongoing social services; giving community organizations flexibility to adjust programs; offering incentives; and vaccinating staff first. These strategies and partnership structures supported vaccine uptake, community organization alignment with their missions and communities’ needs, and trust. Community organizations delivering social services are local community experts and trusted messengers. Pairing social service delivery with COVID-19 vaccination built individual and community agency. Giving COs creative control over program implementation enhanced trust and vaccine delivery. When given appropriate resources and control, community organizations can quickly deliver urgently needed health services in a public health crisis.

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Acknowledgements

This research is supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, OT2HL161610 (Martin, Lynch, Margellos-Anast, Murphy, Peek, Silva, Spring). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. We would like to thank the many partner organizations, their leadership, and their staff who have been working tirelessly on the front lines to serve their communities. These include Broadway Medical Center, Enlace Chicago, Gage Park Latinx Council, The Greater Chicago Food Depository, Hope Community Church, IMPACT, Marillac St. Vincent Family Services, Mobile Care Chicago, New Mount Pilgrim, Phalanx Family Services, Salvation Army Pathway Forward, Quinn Center of St. Eulalia, United for Better Living, Windsor Park Evangelical Church, Woodlawn Community Food Pantry, and Youth Crossroads, and all the others who have participated in and supported this work. We would also like to thank all of the investigators, staff, students, and partners who participated in the Chicagoland CEAL Program. These include, but are not limited, to Nataly Alvarez, ShellLynn Beasely, Sharlene Branscomb, Sakina Burhani, Emma Canty, Yvette Castaneda, Alex Chen, Kathleen Diviak, Amanda Dougherty, Angela Ellison, Meghan R Fortune, Diana Ghebenei, Jacob Ginn, Frank A. Granta, Tyler Halterman, Adlaide Holloway, Stacy Ignoffo, Jacquelyn Jacobs, Monique **dal, Marisa Kutchma, Leilani Lacson, Jacob B. Leven, Sarah Lomahan, Danielle M. Lorche, Jerri Mack, Helen Margellos-Anast, Melina Martinez, Ruben Martinez, Banita McCarn, Margarita Moreno, Angela Moss, AnneMarie Murphy, Sithembinkosi Ndebele, A.B.G. Plum, Ava Salonis, Anna Sandoval, Donalynne Schaffer, Matthew Switalski, and Paris Thomas.

Funding

This research is supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, OT2HL161610 (Martin, Lynch, Margellos-Anast, Murphy, Peek, Silva, Spring).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, USA

    Molly A. Martin, Sara Cook & Jose Carlos Echeverria Garcia

  2. Northwestern University, Chicago, USA

    Bonnie Spring, Madison Hartstein, Samuel Battalio & Milkie Vu

  3. University of Chicago, Chicago, USA

    David Moskowitz, Marina De Pablo & Monica Peek

  4. Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, USA

    Jamillia Delaughter-Young & Elizabeth Lynch

  5. Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, USA

    Abigail Silva

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  1. Molly A. Martin
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For the Chicagoland CEAL Program

Contributions

MM, BS, AS, MP, and EL are all Principal Investigators in the Chicagoland CEAL Program. They designed the program and this research, implemented the work, participated in analyses, and contributed to writing of the manuscript. DM, JD-Y, MH, MDP, and SB participated in research design, implementation, analyses, and manuscript preparation. SC, JCEG, and MV participated in analyses and manuscript preparation. The entire Chicagoland CEAL Program and partners approved of the research prior to implementation and reviewed the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Molly A. Martin.

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Martin, M.A., Cook, S., Spring, B. et al. Delivering COVID-19 Vaccine via Trusted Social Services: Program Evaluation Results from the Chicagoland CEAL Program. J Community Health 49, 61–69 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-023-01242-4

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