TY - JOUR
T1 - Meeting Social Needs in a Crisis Context
T2 - Lessons Learned from Integrating the ‘Take Care Initiative’ into New York City’s Testing and Contact Tracing Program
AU - Massar, Rachel E.
AU - Paul, Margaret M.
AU - Kwok, Lorraine
AU - Chau, Michelle M.
AU - Larson, Rita
AU - Islam, Nadia
AU - Thorpe, Lorna E.
AU - Bendik, Stefanie
AU - Bershteyn, Anna
AU - Berry, Carolyn A.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The New York Academy of Medicine 2024.
PY - 2024/10
Y1 - 2024/10
N2 - The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of addressing social needs in a crisis context. Some US jurisdictions integrated a social service component into case investigation and contact tracing (CI/CT) programs, including the New York City (NYC) Test & Trace (T2) Program; the Take Care initiative referred NYC residents who tested positive or were exposed to COVID-19 to services to support isolation and quarantine and meet basic needs. More research is needed to determine effective implementation strategies for integrating social needs provision into CI/CT programs. To identify barriers and facilitators to the implementation of the Take Care initiative, we conducted key informant interviews with program staff, community-based organization partners, and cases and contacts as part of a larger evaluation of the T2 program. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using rapid qualitative methods. Key facilitators to implementation included utilizing a case management software system, employing strategies to encourage service uptake, leveraging cross-agency collaborations, and partnering with community-based organizations for resource navigation. Barriers identified included external management of the software system, challenges reaching and engaging the public, administrative complications due to shifting collaborations, and management of CBO partners’ structure and hiring. Based on our findings, we provide recommendations to support effective planning and implementation of social needs service provision in a crisis context. Future research should focus on testing promising implementation strategies highlighted in this study and applying them to varied contexts and crisis situations.
AB - The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of addressing social needs in a crisis context. Some US jurisdictions integrated a social service component into case investigation and contact tracing (CI/CT) programs, including the New York City (NYC) Test & Trace (T2) Program; the Take Care initiative referred NYC residents who tested positive or were exposed to COVID-19 to services to support isolation and quarantine and meet basic needs. More research is needed to determine effective implementation strategies for integrating social needs provision into CI/CT programs. To identify barriers and facilitators to the implementation of the Take Care initiative, we conducted key informant interviews with program staff, community-based organization partners, and cases and contacts as part of a larger evaluation of the T2 program. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using rapid qualitative methods. Key facilitators to implementation included utilizing a case management software system, employing strategies to encourage service uptake, leveraging cross-agency collaborations, and partnering with community-based organizations for resource navigation. Barriers identified included external management of the software system, challenges reaching and engaging the public, administrative complications due to shifting collaborations, and management of CBO partners’ structure and hiring. Based on our findings, we provide recommendations to support effective planning and implementation of social needs service provision in a crisis context. Future research should focus on testing promising implementation strategies highlighted in this study and applying them to varied contexts and crisis situations.
KW - Contact tracing
KW - COVID-19 prevention and control
KW - Implementation evaluation
KW - SARS-CoV-2
KW - Social needs
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U2 - 10.1007/s11524-024-00900-9
DO - 10.1007/s11524-024-00900-9
M3 - Article
C2 - 39266870
AN - SCOPUS:85203669866
SN - 1099-3460
VL - 101
SP - 902
EP - 912
JO - Journal of Urban Health
JF - Journal of Urban Health
IS - 5
ER -