Summary
In response to the existing health equity gap for communities of color, which the pandemic exacerbated, this collaboration tackled the challenge of increasing COVID-19 vaccination rates and improving health equity among Latina/x/o individuals of childbearing age in southern Arizona. Partnering with the local health department and a diverse Community of Practice, our team employed a Human-Centered Design approach to co-create and pilot solutions that address critical health needs and strengthen patient-practitioner trust. Our year-long design process led to the successful implementation of a community and a clinical pilot that enhanced healthcare navigation and engagement for our primary users, with early outcomes showing positive impacts on the local healthcare system. This experience underscores the power of creating space for cross-disciplinary collaboration and offers valuable insights into integrating equity-focused practices within service design. Attendees will learn about the effectiveness of coalition-based approaches and strategies for broadening service design practices to address complex health equity issues affecting diverse, low income communities.
Key Insights
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Forming a Community of Practice (COP) with trusted local partners is essential for authentic community engagement and project credibility.
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Equitable compensation for community members as experts disrupts traditional undervaluing of lived experience.
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Designing with the COP from problem definition through prototyping deepens decision-making power and fosters ownership.
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Human-centered design must be adapted to reduce jargon and ambiguous process barriers for non-designer stakeholders.
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Low-fidelity prototypes combined with storyboards enable community participants to feel empowered to give feedback.
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Embedding promotoras with lived experience as intermediaries improves clinical interactions and health literacy.
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Long-term sustainable partnerships and incorporating community feedback improve health campaign efficacy and trust.
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Institutional red tape around payments and incentive structures require proactive negotiation and new procedures.
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Early assessment of partner capacity helps balance innovation with realistic organizational constraints.
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Success measurement combining quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews helps capture changes in patient confidence and provider satisfaction.
Notable Quotes
"We decided with the COP to view our budget as a moral document."
"Community members are experts in their own lived experience and that expertise is valuable."
"The COP became the beating heart of our project."
"HCD is not a hypothesis driven practice; it requires a certain level of comfort with ambiguity."
"Embedding promotoras from the Latina community helped patients access resources and set visit goals."
"Reducing jargon and avoiding complicated language makes the design process accessible for non-designers."
"We educated organizations on keeping payments below the $599 tax reporting threshold to protect participant benefits."
"Our clinical partner added three permanent health promotora positions to continue assisting Latinx patients."
"Using trusted local communication channels beyond standard government platforms enhances outreach efficacy."
"Participation must be accessible, sustainable, and irresistible."
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