Grassroots and Digital Outreach Strategies Raise Awareness of COVID-19 Information and Research in Baltimore City

Abstract

We aimed to disseminate reliable COVID-19 information to the Black and Latino communities of Baltimore City, Maryland, between July 2020 and December 2022. With community partners, we disseminated evidence-based COVID-19 information via grassroots and digital strategies, including Hopkins Opportunity for Participant Engagement, and connected volunteers to COVID-19 research. Using a multimodal approach facilitated dissemination of reliable information and raised awareness of research; evaluation of trust is ongoing. Robust, multimodal strategies are needed to foster trust and equity among diverse communities. (Am J Public Health. 2024;114(S1):S69-S73. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2023.307492).

FIGURE 1—

Enrollment in HOPE by Zip Code: Baltimore, MD, July 2020–December 2022 Note. HOPE = Hopkins Opportunity for Participant Engagement. There is an online interactive version of this map available at: https://publiclypublished.shinyapps.io/CEAL_HOPE.

FIGURE 2—

Events Cosponsored by the CEAL–DMV Community Health Promoters: Baltimore, MD, May 2021–December 2022 Note. CEAL–DMV = Community Engagement Alliance–Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia. The number in each red circle indicates the number of events in the respective cluster. There is an online interactive version of this map available at: https://publiclypublished.shinyapps.io/CEAL_HOPE.