It started during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many people across the United States were unsure how to stay safe and whether to get vaccinated. Hesitancy was especially pronounced in communities of color because of experiences of discrimination and historical injustices like the Tuskegee Study, which intentionally withheld treatment from Black men diagnosed with syphilis.
In that moment, building trust in vaccines and other public health measures required a radically different approach. In Anne Arundel County, one of 24 counties in Maryland, the answer was establishing a group of “health ambassadors,” community members trained in basic public health principles and strategies to reduce the spread of infectious diseases. They distributed COVID-19 test kits and masks, and shared information on how to protect oneself.
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“The community health ambassadors were our critical partners and boots on the ground,” says Donna Perkins, Director of the Office of Assessment and Planning at the Anne Arundel County Department of Health in Maryland. “They came from community and faith-based organizations that serve the residents of our county. They were frontline public health workers and trusted voices in our local neighborhoods.” The program, housed within the department’s health equity and racial justice arm and with its own Facebook page, aims to reduce health disparities…