Vol. 2, No. 1

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Action Items: Mark your calendar: next Project-wide Meeting is Jan. 20 Submit your proposal for a manuscript to be considered for a RADx-UP journal supplement. Details below. Assist with a systematic review of literature on social determinants of health and how they relate to COVID-19 testing. Details below.

Dear RADx-UP Partners, Happy New Year and welcome back! We hope you are well, healthy, and rested – and ready for another intense year of research, community engagement, and seeking for solutions to end this pandemic.   We know we can build on the work of the last year, in which RADx-UP project teams overcame challenges and pursued opportunities to produce quality research. You already are making a difference in communities hardest hit by COVID-19. See a list of highlights in this year in review.   What’s ahead in 2022? As your projects are completing your data collection, analyzing the results, and publishing your lessons learned, the CDCC will be here to support you every step of the way and to help disseminate your work far and wide. We look forward to everything you will publish and share in the year ahead – including our cross-consortium data analyses.

Next Project-wide Meeting Our next Project-wide Meeting will be Thurs., Jan. 20 at 2 p.m. ET. Who should attend: Project team leaders and study coordinators. This meeting will feature a RADx-UP project team and its vaccine promotion campaign as well as provide updates from the RADx-UP Evaluation Team and the CDCC COVID-19 Testing Core. Call for manuscript proposals The RADx-UP CDCC has proposed a special supplement to describe the RADx-UP program and findings from select projects to a leading public health journal. Use this form to submit your proposal for a manuscript to be considered for this supplement; deadline for proposals is Feb. 1.

Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith Highlights Trust and Partnership for COVID-19 Equity - RADx-UP Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith is the Senior Advisor for the White House COVID-19 Response Team, a chair of the COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force, and a professor at Yale University. The second day of the RADx-UP Equity Evidence Academy opened with an interview with Nunez-Smith. She discussed the path to sustainable and equitable COVID-19 testing and vaccination. Read more.

A Faithful Response to COVID-19 In a new video profile of the RADx-UP project in Kansas City, Jannette Berkley-Patton and the Reverend Eric Williams discuss their community-based participatory research. “Nobody's opinion is left ignored. We know at the end of the project that we'll have some tangible resources left,” says Rev. Williams. “The relationships that we build with other faith-based institutions, other medical institutes, and other research institutions begin to serve as a model for next steps. What we do here will translate into the next issue, the next problem, the next pandemic, the next health issue that we have to deal with.”

COVID-19 Equity Evidence Academy The second COVID-19 Equity Evidence Academy of 2021, Looking Forward: Bridging Infrastructures for Equitable COVID-19 Testing and Vaccination, took place Nov. 17 and 18. Recordings, slides, and materials from each of the presentations at the November meeting are posted to the website. View them here.

Community Connections meeting Community partners are invited to join other community partners for an open discussion at Community Connections on Wed., Jan. 26 from 1:30 p.m. ET to 3:00 p.m. ET to discuss our shared goal of equity through engagement. Register here.

SDoH Workgroup Systematic Review The RADx-UP Understanding Social Determinants of COVID-19 Testing and Vaccination Working Group is beginning a systematic review of literature on social determinants of health and how they relate to COVID-19 testing. The group is searching for reviewers to assist with assessing abstracts and manuscripts for inclusion or exclusion based on provided criteria. We prefer individuals with prior experience in literature reviews, but we are prepared to provide training as necessary. We will also provide access to the Covidence software. Contact your EIT to participate.

Upcoming Event Our partners at the Campus Community Partners for Health are hosting a webinar next week. Pivoting for Success: Using Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) During the Twin Pandemics will take place Thurs., Jan. 20, 3 p.m. ET. immediately following the project-wide meeting. The twin pandemics known as COVID-19 and institutionalized racism have continued to shine light on the numerous inequities and disparities in communities across the world. As the pandemics continue with the rise of the Omicron variant, it is critical that we understand the essential pivots community and academic CBPR practitioners have implemented to advance the work towards health equity.  This virtual roundtable seeks to share best practices to overcome challenges and explore successes to rapidly develop new partnerships using a CBPR approach. Register.

Please contact us at RADx-UP-CDCC@duke.edu or through your assigned CDCC EIT (see current list under Engagement Impact Teams). Use this form to alert the CDCC to resources like the item above or other information coming out of your project or community.