TY - JOUR
T1 - Community Testing and SARS-CoV-2 Rates for Latinxs in Baltimore
AU - Bigelow, Benjamin F.
AU - Saxton, Ronald E.
AU - Flores-Miller, Alejandra
AU - Mostafa, Heba H.
AU - Loss, Manisha J.
AU - Phillips, Katherine H.
AU - Moore, Adrianna M.
AU - Hale, W. Daniel
AU - Tolson, Tina M.
AU - McCann, Nicki S.
AU - Catlett, Christina L.
AU - Golden, Sherita H.
AU - Clark, Jeanne M.
AU - Page, Kathleen Raquel
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was in part supported by the NIH Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics-Underserved Populations initiative (Grant R01 DA045556-04S1).
Funding Information:
The authors would like to acknowledge the John Hopkins GoTeam volunteers, the Latinx outreach team (Alejandra Flores-Miller, Ana Cervantes, Ana Ortega Meza, and Melissa Cuesta), and the support from Alicia Wilson, the Vice President of Economic Development for Johns Hopkins University, and Inez Stewart, the Senior Vice President of Human Resources at Johns Hopkins Medicine. This work could not have been possible without the advocacy from Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development, especially that from Reverend George Hopkins, Bishop Bruce Lewandowski, and Rachel Brooks. This work was in part supported by the NIH Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics-Underserved Populations initiative (Grant R01 DA045556-04S1). No financial disclosures were reported by the authors of this paper.
Funding Information:
The authors would like to acknowledge the John Hopkins GoTeam volunteers, the Latinx outreach team (Alejandra Flores-Miller, Ana Cervantes, Ana Ortega Meza, and Melissa Cuesta), and the support from Alicia Wilson, the Vice President of Economic Development for Johns Hopkins University, and Inez Stewart, the Senior Vice President of Human Resources at Johns Hopkins Medicine. This work could not have been possible without the advocacy from Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development, especially that from Reverend George Hopkins, Bishop Bruce Lewandowski, and Rachel Brooks.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021
PY - 2021/6
Y1 - 2021/6
N2 - Introduction: Latinxs have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Latinx immigrants, in particular, face significant barriers to SARS-CoV-2 testing, including lack of insurance, language barriers, stigma, work conflicts, and limited transportation. Methods: In response to a disproportionately high SARS-CoV-2 positivity rate among Latinxs at the Johns Hopkins Health System, investigators implemented free community-based testing by partnering with religious leaders and leveraging the skill of trusted community health workers. Data were extracted from the electronic health record and a Research Electronic Data Capture database. SARS-CoV-2 positivity was evaluated per event stratified by race/ethnicity. Total rates of SARS-CoV-2 positivity and categorical patient characteristics were compared between groups using chi-square tests. Results: Between June 25, 2020 and October 15, 2020, a total of 1,786 patients (57.5% Latinx, 31.2% non-Hispanic White, 5.9% non-Hispanic Black, and 5.3% non-Hispanic other) were tested for SARS-CoV-2 in 18 testing events. Among them, 355 (19.9%) tested positive. The positivity rate was 31.5% for Latinxs, 7.6% for non-Hispanic Blacks, 3.4% for non-Hispanic Whites, and 5.3% for patients of other races/ethnicities. Compared with Latinxs who tested negative, Latinxs who tested positive were more likely to report Spanish as their preferred language (91.6% vs 81.7%, p<0.001), be younger (30.4 vs 33.4 years, p<0.008), and have a larger household size (4.8 vs 4.3 members, p<0.002). Conclusions: Community-based testing identified high levels of ongoing SARS-CoV-2 transmission among primarily Latinxs with limited English proficiency. During this period, the overall positivity rate at this community testing site was almost 10 times higher among Latinxs than among non-Hispanic Whites.
AB - Introduction: Latinxs have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Latinx immigrants, in particular, face significant barriers to SARS-CoV-2 testing, including lack of insurance, language barriers, stigma, work conflicts, and limited transportation. Methods: In response to a disproportionately high SARS-CoV-2 positivity rate among Latinxs at the Johns Hopkins Health System, investigators implemented free community-based testing by partnering with religious leaders and leveraging the skill of trusted community health workers. Data were extracted from the electronic health record and a Research Electronic Data Capture database. SARS-CoV-2 positivity was evaluated per event stratified by race/ethnicity. Total rates of SARS-CoV-2 positivity and categorical patient characteristics were compared between groups using chi-square tests. Results: Between June 25, 2020 and October 15, 2020, a total of 1,786 patients (57.5% Latinx, 31.2% non-Hispanic White, 5.9% non-Hispanic Black, and 5.3% non-Hispanic other) were tested for SARS-CoV-2 in 18 testing events. Among them, 355 (19.9%) tested positive. The positivity rate was 31.5% for Latinxs, 7.6% for non-Hispanic Blacks, 3.4% for non-Hispanic Whites, and 5.3% for patients of other races/ethnicities. Compared with Latinxs who tested negative, Latinxs who tested positive were more likely to report Spanish as their preferred language (91.6% vs 81.7%, p<0.001), be younger (30.4 vs 33.4 years, p<0.008), and have a larger household size (4.8 vs 4.3 members, p<0.002). Conclusions: Community-based testing identified high levels of ongoing SARS-CoV-2 transmission among primarily Latinxs with limited English proficiency. During this period, the overall positivity rate at this community testing site was almost 10 times higher among Latinxs than among non-Hispanic Whites.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.amepre.2021.01.005
DO - 10.1016/j.amepre.2021.01.005
M3 - Article
C2 - 33775510
AN - SCOPUS:85103274883
SN - 0749-3797
VL - 60
SP - e281-e286
JO - American journal of preventive medicine
JF - American journal of preventive medicine
IS - 6
ER -