“The System Doesn’t Let Us in”—A Call for Inclusive COVID-19 Vaccine Outreach Rooted in Los Angeles Latinos’ Experience of Pandemic Hardships and Inequities

Abstract

Objective. Latino adults in Los Angeles have experienced disproportionate cases, deaths, and socioeconomic impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic. This qualitative study aimed to explore community perspectives on readiness for COVID-19 vaccination and to identify culturally tailored vaccine outreach strategies. Methods. We conducted virtual focus groups with Los Angeles County Latino/a residents via Zoom between December 2020 to January 2021, as the first COVID-19 vaccines were receiving Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). Focus groups were facilitated in Spanish and English by bilingual members of the research team. Discussions were analyzed via Atlas.ti software using reflexive thematic analysis. Results. Three focus groups (n = 15; four to six people each; two Spanish focus groups; one English) were conducted. Thematic findings centered on Latino COVID-19 vaccine equity: (1) Disproportionate infection risk due to essential worker status and socioeconomic burdens, misinformation, and familial or cultural tensions (2) Concerns for inequitable vaccine access due to immigration fears and limited healthcare access, and (3) A need for community-centered COVID-19 vaccine outreach and access. Conclusions. Our study on early Latino adult reactions to vaccine roll-out suggests the need for outreach strategies centering on validating community hardships, combating dis-/misinformation through trusted sources, and addressing socio-economic needs impacted by the pandemic.

“I thought I was going to die there:” Socio-political contexts and the plight of undocumented Latinx in the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Although it is outside of our study scope to check whether the rumors were misinformation or not, our findings show that ULI's health care behavior was heavily affected by rumors about racism, poor service quality in the hospital, and negative health outcomes from the hospital. This finding is partly supported by previous work on the prevalent misinformation among the Latinx community ( Castellon-Lopez et al, 2022 ) and its negative impact on receiving timely healthcare ( Khubchandani & Macias, 2021 ). These findings, overall, indicate that socio-political contexts surrounding ULI, such as immigration policy, inconsistency in social services, prevalence of misinformation, and racism, may moderate the impact of the COVID-19 risk as well as the resource unavailability and quality in shaping ULI's challenges during the pandemic.…”

Navigating vaccination choices: The intersecting dynamics of institutional trust, belonging and message perception among Congolese migrants in the UK (A reflexive thematic analysis)

“…Migrants suffered disproportionately during the COVID-19 pandemic, facing heightened health risks (1)(2)(3)(4), poorer health outcomes (1,(5)(6)(7)(8) and lower vaccine uptake rates (9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15), compared to nonmigrant communities. There is an urgent need to critically examine the structural factors underpinning these inequitable outcomes, to guide the design of inclusive interventions and policies which can advance health and vaccine equity.…”

Experiences of Latinx sexual and gender minorities with access to healthcare during COVID-19 stay-at-home orders

“…Some interviewees shared that they engaged with healthcare providers to advocate for the needs of their communities and peers, while others expressed that their community was their most significant source of support during the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and for their healthcare needs. During the COVID-19 pandemic response, the Latinx community called for increased community engagement to improve vaccine outreach and access, 39 which reflects the narrative of participants in this study when they discussed community engagement related to pharmaceutical care. These findings are consistent with evidence suggesting that peer-based strategies can lead to positive health outcomes and better engagement in care and research for Latinx populations affected by HIV.…”