History

History of the Health Equity Task Force

The Wyandotte County Health Equity Task Force (HETF) has worked since the beginning of the pandemic to provide a community-informed response to COVID-19.

The HETF has sought to make COVID-19 resources, including testing and vaccinations, more accessible to underserved populations. This work has evolved over time and its collaborative efforts continue today.

How the Health Equity Task Force was formed:

The first case of COVID-19 in Wyandotte County, Kansas, and the first death attributed to COVID-19 in the state of Kansas, was announced on March 11, 2020.

Within one week, Public Health Director Juliann VanLiew, Doctor Erin Corriveau and Doctor Allen Greiner met with community leaders Broderick Crawford, Executive Director of the NBC CDC, and Rachel Jefferson Executive Director of Groundwork NRG.

Their intent was to bring community members together to provide advice, input and guidance on the COVID-19 public health response for Wyandotte County.

When local leaders gathered at Union Station on March, 22, 2020, stay at home orders were announced to control COVID-19. At the event, Dr. Allen Greiner asked then-Mayor David Alvey for his official support to start a Wyandotte County “COVID Health Equity Task Force”.

Once formed, the Health Equity Task Force (HETF) invited community and health leaders to join as members of the HETF. The HETF developed subcommittees to support Testing Subcommittee, a Community & Health Leaders Subcommittee, and a Research Subcommittee to include a wider array of representatives from Wyandotte County neighborhoods and organizations.

The Health Equity Task Force Timeline

From April, 2020:

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In April, 2020, a COVID-19 outbreak at a church in Northeast Kansas City, Kansas saw 5 deaths and 44 cases.
In April, 2020, a COVID-19 outbreak at a church in Northeast Kansas City, Kansas saw 5 deaths and 44 cases.

A gathering of faith leaders in Wyandotte County saw multiple cases of COVID-19. It was one of the first COVID-19 outbreaks in the Kansas City region.

The Wyandotte County Health Equity Task Force (HETF) was formed in April, 2020.
The Wyandotte County Health Equity Task Force (HETF) was formed in April, 2020.

In response to the racial and ethnic disparities related to COVID cases and deaths, the Unified Government Public Health Department organized the Wyandotte County Health Equity Task Force to address this issue. This group is made up of community leaders and stakeholders that are well connected and respected in their communities and who provide guidance related to strategies that can lessen the unequal impacts of COVID-19.

Early data showed that communities of color in Kansas were more likely to die from COVID-19.
Early data showed that communities of color in Kansas were more likely to die from COVID-19.

In June, 2020, a study by the APM Research Lab showed how COVID-19 was inequitably impacting communities of color . HETF member Broderick Crawford (NBC CDC) joined the APM Research Lab on radio to talk about racial disparities related to COVID-19.

The HETF sought to address racial disparities in health care as COVID-19 cases increased.
The HETF sought to address racial disparities in health care as COVID-19 cases increased.

The Health Equity Task Force (HETF) was featured for their work confronting racial inequities as COVID-19 cases continued to climb in June, 2020.

Early in the pandemic, Black and Hispanic people in Kansas had fewer COVID-19 testing options.
Early in the pandemic, Black and Hispanic people in Kansas had fewer COVID-19 testing options.

Wyandotte County (which in July, 2020, had the highest COVID-19 positivity rates on the Kansas side of Kansas City metropolitan region) saw that permanent testing sites were not in areas where most Black, Latino/Hispanic, and Asian people lived. The HETF responded by increasing the availability of testing community locations more accessible to the community.

The HETF learned new ways to fight COVID-19 in neighborhoods and shared their own approach.
The HETF learned new ways to fight COVID-19 in neighborhoods and shared their own approach.

Organized in August, 2020, by the Community Concerned for Immigrants & Refugees, HETF members Andrea Perdomo-Morales (Vibrant Health), Rev. Mang Sonna (Bethel Neighborhood Center), and Mariana Ramirez (JUNTOS) participated in a panel discussion about the "Test-to-Care" model and the efforts of the HETF.

The HETF approach was used by KU Med to support similar health equity action teams across Kansas.
The HETF approach was used by KU Med to support similar health equity action teams across Kansas.

In October, 2020, KU Medical Center received NIH grant funding to support local health equity teams (LHEATs) to fight COVID-19 across Kansas. The Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics Underserved Populations (RADx-UP) program provided funding to the HETF and ten other LHEATs in Kansas to alleviate the barriers to testing for communities most vulnerable to COVID-19.

HETF members led efforts to translate COVID-19 information to make it more accessible throughout Wyandotte County.
HETF members led efforts to translate COVID-19 information to make it more accessible throughout Wyandotte County.

In February, 2021, the efforts of HETF members Erica Andrade (El Centro) and Mariana Ramirez (JUNTOS) were featured as they worked to make COVID-19 information to more accessible to Latino, immigrant, and undocumented populations in Wyandotte County.

The State of Kansas worked with HETF members to address racial disparities in COVID-19 vaccination rates.
The State of Kansas worked with HETF members to address racial disparities in COVID-19 vaccination rates.

As the pandemic evolved and vaccines became more readily available, HETF members, including Broderick Crawford (NBC CDC) and Rev. Tony Carter Jr. (Salem Baptist Church), worked with the Kansas COVID-19 Vaccine Equity Task Force to help them meet communities where they were.

The HETF presented Wyandotte County's efforts to the CDC.
The HETF presented Wyandotte County's efforts to the CDC.

In September, 2021, HETF members Nicole Garner (UG Public Health Department) and Broderick Crawford (NBC CDC) presented " A Community’s Response to a Pandemic: Wyandotte County’s Health Equity Taskforce " to the Public Health Grand Rounds, a Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) program.

As Omicron surged, HETF members led the rollout of pop-up COVID-19 testing.
As Omicron surged, HETF members led the rollout of pop-up COVID-19 testing.

Working with the HETF’s Testing Subcommittee, Vibrant Health engaged with faith-based community partner Oak Ridge Baptist Church to use their parking lot to respond to the surging demand for COVID-19 tests caused by the Omicron variant.

The Health Outcomes Assembly brought together health care, education and nonprofits to reflect and strategize on health disparities
The Health Outcomes Assembly brought together health care, education and nonprofits to reflect and strategize on health disparities

Members of the Wyandotte County Health Equity Task Force and community partners shared the barriers to accessing health on a panel for the Health Outcomes Assembly on August 26, 2022.

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