West virginia health disparities hub and spoke: expanding capacity of health. - the west virginia department of health and human resources (wvdhhr) bureau for public health (BPH) serves and protects…

West virginia health disparities hub and spoke: expanding capacity of health. - the west virginia department of health and human resources (wvdhhr) bureau for public health (BPH) serves and protects the people of west virginia. Taking a people-first approach, wvdhhr BPH designs and delivers programs and services that support all west virginians. The covid-19 pandemic, however, has exacerbated already significant health disparities impacting west virginia?s most vulnerable residents. While wvdhhr BPH and various cross-sector partners collaborate to deliver the state?s covid-19 response, residents in minority and rural communities continue to face challenges due to long-standing inequities. Wvdhhr BPH continues to enhance existing collaborations and strengthen the wider public health infrastructure to advance health equity in historically underserved and disproportionately affected communities in west virginia. A cross-sector collaboration model, unique to public health, was a key factor in the success of WV?s vaccine response. By executive order, the governor of WV created a covid-19 joint interagency task force (covid-19 jiatf), ordering them to be the principal agency leading the state?s covid-19 response. The jiatf is responsible for logistical support for all aspects of the pandemic response. This includes supporting statewide covid-19 testing events, allocation and distribution of personal protective equipment (PPE), and the receipt and distribution of covid-19 vaccines. As described in the CDC-RFA-OT-21-2103 nofo, the overarching goal of this initiative is reducing covid-19 related disparities by improving state and local capacity and services aimed at preventing and controlling covid-19 infection (or transmission) among populations at higher risk and that are underserved, including racial and ethnic minority groups and people living in rural communities. Anticipated long-term outcomes for minority and populations include from this initiative include: increased testing and vaccination; improved data collection and RE porting ; an expanded public health workforce that is culturally competent and health equity focused; expanded and strengthened programs targeting underserved populations; increased access to services through technology, transport, and other means; streamlined coordination between health services; targeted and culturally competent communication; operational community and health equity plans; strengthened community workgroups; and effective cross-sector coalitions.