VCSA Community Vaccination Project Report 2021

Analysis: Alexander Le | Design: David Nguyen

Executive Summary

1

Mission

2

Implementation

Equity in Testing Distribution

3

Equity in Vaccine Distribution

4

Equity in Vaccine Registration

5

Key Findings

6

Partnerships

7

Testimonials & Media

8

Recommendations

9

Acknowledgments

10

Beginning in May 2020, the Vietnamese Culture and Science Association (VCSA) launched efforts to secure COVID-19 testing kits and vaccinations for the Houston community, with a focus on elderly Vietnamese Americans facing language and technology barriers.

By June 2021, through our Community Vaccination Project , we provided over 2,000 COVID-19 tests and over 3,200 vaccines for Houstonians of all backgrounds. Our vaccination phase had two main components: 1) individual appointments scheduled via local providers 2) mobile vaccination clinics in under-resourced areas.

Our efforts have been featured in the Houston Chronicle and the Texas Tribune. Our work is entirely volunteer-driven, and would not be possible without those who have tirelessly worked to uplift our community’s needs.

vcsa community vaccination project

One overarching goal and three core objectives guided the work of VCSA's initiative:

1. Engage with key community sites to identify needs Communicate with trusted community members, residential complexes, and senior living facilities to determine resource allocation

2. Utilize an integrated approach to deliver resources Deliver COVID-19 tests and vaccines through a multifaceted strategy that addresses accessibility barriers common to the Vietnamese community

3. Expand capacity for future health programming Form partnerships with community organizations and health agencies, and recruit volunteers for health-related initiatives

vcsa community vaccination project

2

Equity in Testing Distribution Prior to the wide availability of COVID-19 vaccinations, VCSA coordinated multiple testing drives targeted towards the Houston Vietnamese community.

In total, our team conducted over 2,000 COVID-19 tests at 5 testing drives throughout 2020.

Above: Harris County's Social Vulnerability Index, assessing COVID-19 risk by zip code.

Blue stars indicate VCSA testing sites: 77040, 77075, 77083, 77477

Large-Scale Drive-Thru Testing Sites With testing kits supplied by Clinical Pathology Laboratories, VCSA coordinated high-volume, socially distanced testing drives at Stafford Municipal School District and three culturallysignificant community sites: Lien Hoa Buddhist Temple, Vietnamese Martyrs Catholic Church, and Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church.

vcsa community vaccination project

3

Equity in Vaccine Distribution In collaboration with the City of Houston, VCSA worked to expand the geographic reach of vaccine distribution to high-risk, uninsured, and historically-excluded Harris County residents.

Above: Harris County's Social Vulnerability Index, assessing COVID-19 risk by zip code.

Yellow stars indicate VCSA distribution sites: 77031, 77036, 77061, 77072, 77075, 77083

In total, our team physically distributed nearly 2,200 vaccines to socially vulnerable communities using the following threefactor approach:

Large-Scale Drive-Thru Sites (64% of output) We helped coordinate high-volume, socially distanced distributions at culturally significant community sites: Lien Hoa Buddhist Temple, Jade Buddha Temple, & Vietnamese Martyrs Catholic Church.

Healthcare Partner Distributions (24% of output) We coordinated vaccinations in collaboration with trusted community-based FQHCs, including Busy Bee Wellness Center and HOPE Clinic.

Residential Distributions (12% of output) To reduce transportation barriers and accessibility gaps for disadvantaged populations, we coordinated a mobile vaccination unit at Thai Xuan Village. vcsa community vaccination project

4

Equity in Vaccine Registration During the initial state vaccine rollout, the vast majority of providers required eligible individuals to pre-register for appointments online or by phone.

In total, our team secured over 1,000 individual vaccine appointments.

Recognizing potential language and technology barriers, VCSA developed an initiative to schedule vaccination appointments for Vietnamese Americans and members of other historicallyexcluded communities.

Between February 5th and April 23rd, we distributed a English-Vietnamese waitlist to healthcare providers, senior-living facilities, and residential complexes with significant Vietnamese populations.

Individuals were able to register for this waitlist through an online form, by email,

Appointments were obtained through the following vaccine providers:

City of Pearland CVS Fort Bend Health & Human Services Harris County Public Health Houston Health Department Kroger Memorial Hermann Sam's Club Walmart

or a volunteer-staffed hotline number.

Every night, our "Vaccine Hunters" team registered individuals at various sites, pending availability and eligibility criteria. vcsa community vaccination project

5

of approximately 1000 patients scheduled for vaccination appointments

80%

of patients were 50 years and older

25%

of patients were 65 years and older

95%

identified as Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI)

*listed as socially vulnerable as indicated by Harris County Public Health

Other Zip Codes 60.8%

77072* 14.5%

77061* 7.7%

77083* 7%

er Zip Codes 60.8%

77089* 6.1%

11%

89%

77407 4%

89% of patients were from socially vulnerable zip codes vcsa community vaccination project

6

Key Logistic Partners Vietnamese American Medical Association (VAMA) Vietnamese American Nurses Association (VANA) Vietnamese American Pharmacists Association (VAPhA) Van Lang IPA

Vaccine and Testing Providers City of Houston Health Equity Response (H.E.R.) Initiative & Task Force

H-E-B Pharmacy Kroger Pharmacy Clinical Pathology Laboratories

Resource Providers Harris County Public Health (HCPH) Houston Health Department (HHD) Harris County Precinct 2 Constable's Office Houston Police Department Houston Unity Lions Club Molina Healthcare Texas Woman's University vcsa community vaccination project

"If we want to maintain a healthy community, we have to all be in this together."

- Dr. Tram Ho

VAMA, City of Houston H.E.R. Task Force "I appreciate the Vietnamese community for allowing us to be here and for being so open to vaccinating everyone."

- Teresa Trinh VCSA President

Coverage of our initiatives has been featured in several news agencies: Houston's Vietnamese community gets shot at recovery (Houston Chronicle) Opinion: I found solidarity and acceptance in the Asian American community (Houston Chronicle) Language barriers, technology hurdles and limited transportation hurt Asian American Texans' access to vaccines (Texas Tribune) Nearly 100 second dose COVID-19 vaccines administered to Houston's Asian American community (FOX 26 Houston) Bu ổ i chích ngừa Covid Janssen vaccine t ạ i Chùa Liên Hoa (VIETV Houston) Vietnamese COVID-19 Vaccine at HOPE Clinic ( VIETV Houston) vcsa community vaccination project

for similar initiatives and future health programming

Use a multidisciplinary, intergenerational team-based framework to maximize buy-in across varied sectors

Invite expertise from diverse fields, incorporating private-public partnerships for maximum reach Leverage existing relationships rooted in trust (e.g. community leaders, culturally-significant sites) and prioritize open communication, allowing for efficient program implementation

Advocate for increased data disaggregation within Asian American subgroups to accurately identify inequities across race/ethnicity (e.g. vaccine registration rates)

Engage communities of interest to ensure recipients are representative of those most adversely impacted and would benefit from consensual, community-based intervention Conduct in-language interviews and focus groups with community members to better understand their needs and the impact of prospective programs on health outcomes Design programs around bridging gaps in access, while ensuring those structurally marginalized based on demographic factors (e.g. race, SES) are included in planning and implementation. vcsa community vaccination project

This effort would not be possible without the work of several key people, particularly Teresa Trinh and Jenny Le for developing the foundation of this project.

VCSA also recognizes the work of Dr. Tram Ho for her work and advocacy in securing vaccines and sharing COVID-19 information to the Vietnamese American community since the beginning of the pandemic.

Our vaccination and testing initiative owes its successes to the 80 + volunteers who have supported VCSA in our efforts:

Team Leads Alexander Le Jenny Le Catherine Nguyen Cecilia Nguyen David Nguyen Christine Tran Teresa Trinh

Vaccine Hunters Ann La BaoNgan Nguyen Cecilia Nguyen Christine Cao Doan Pham Faith Huynh John Nguyen Julie Trinh Kathy Nguyen

Kenneth Lam Lan Nguyen Maggie Zhang Minh Tran NgocTien Nguyen Nhu Y Nguyen Tam Le Violette Phan Xuan Tran

Key community point of contacts: Kent Huynh, Myle Jones, Bich Thuan Nguyen, Hung Pham, Tuyet Van, Thay Huyen Viet, Hoa Vu

Mobile Clinics Thank you to the healthcare providers who have helped coordinate our distributions:

Dr. Stephen Au, Dr. Khoa Cao, Dr. Marla Fielder, Dr. Kathy Flanagan, Dr. Vi Ho, Dr. Rick Ngo, Dr. Khanh Nguyen, Dr. Ngoc Pham, Dr. Tri Pham, Dr. Jerry Tsao

Thank you to our media team for documenting our efforts through journalism, video, and photography: We are grateful for our many volunteers, and extend a special thank-you to those who have volunteered multiple times:

vcsa community vaccination project

Rachel Carlton, Jaelyn Chen, My Hoach, Maianh Nguyen, Vuong Nguyen

Tien Ho, Michelle Le, Danny Nguyen, Nam Nguyen, Phuong Nguyen, Van Nguyen, Trang Trinh, Officer Don Vo, Texas Woman's University School of Nursing

The Vietnamese Culture and Science Association thanks the many volunteers and supporters of our Community Vaccination Project for their transformational work in furthering our mission to strengthen the health and resilience of our communities.

vcsa community vaccination project

LEADERSHIP - CULTURE - EDUCATION - EXCELLENCE - VOLUNTEERISM

www.vcsa.org