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. 2020 Nov 9;5(4):168.
doi: 10.3390/tropicalmed5040168.

2018 Zika Health Brigade: Delivering Critical Health Screening in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Shana Godfred-Cato  1 , S Nicole Fehrenbach  1 , Megan R Reynolds  1 , Romeo R Galang  2 , Dan Schoelles  3 , Lessely Brown-Shuler  4 , Braeanna Hillman  5   6 , Leah DeWilde  5   6 , Andra Prosper  5   6 , Amy Hudson  7 , Cynthia A Moore  1 , Esther M Ellis  5   6
Affiliations

2018 Zika Health Brigade: Delivering Critical Health Screening in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Shana Godfred-Cato et al. Trop Med Infect Dis. .

Abstract

In 2017, Hurricanes Irma and Maria caused significant damage to the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), heightening the challenges many residents faced in accessing adequate healthcare and receiving recommended Zika virus screening services. To address this challenge, the USVI Department of Health (DOH) requested technical assistance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) to organize a health brigade to bring needed medical care to an underserved population. It also established the development of important partnerships between federal and private partners as well as between clinical providers and public health entities such as the Epidemiology & Disease Reporting, Maternal Child Health (MCH), and Infant and Toddlers Programs within the DOH, and local clinicians. This health brigade model could be replicated to ensure recommended evaluations are delivered to populations that may have unmet medical needs due to the complexity of the conditions and/or rural location.

Keywords: congenital Zika infection; congenital Zika syndrome; health brigade; health screenings.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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