Messaging campaign targets critical gaps in COVID-19 workplace practices

Marta Venezuela Moreno is like Santa Claus on a mission, her arms full of clear plastic bags containing goodies she's giving out to families and businesses in Longmont. But instead of toys, she's delivering personal protective equipment, thermometers, nurturing tea and information that could save lives and livelihoods.

The care packages are part of a new public health messaging campaign targeting businesses and frontline workers who are at higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and suffering severe economic consequences.

The program addresses an alarming gap in information that disease investigators at Boulder County Public Health discovered while doing contact tracing for people who have COVID-19 or have been exposed.

"Some folks in some communities were having special trouble being able to adhere to quarantine because of the financial impact of that. Workers were either not being able to get time off, they needed the money or were afraid they would lose their job," said Chana Goussetis, communications specialist, for BCPH.

Informing public-facing employees and businesses about their rights and responsibilities isn't an easy task, Goussetis said, especially when English isn't the first language, "We know there are a lot of Russian speakers in long-term care facilities. There is the Nepolese community. Spanish speaking is the biggest population that we know."

The Latinx community, in particular, has been disproportionately hit with serious cases and deaths from COVID-19. "We saw in the data that there is disparity. So we have to have equity in disease prevention. We understand that some communities do not trust government. We need to communicate with people in different ways. We know this is best practice in reaching some communities," Goussetis said.

That's why BCPH hired a cultural broker, Crea Results, an organization that has relationships with people and organizations that can get the word out. Crea's job was to create formal partnerships and distribute funds to nonprofits and individuals who could get out information and supplies to their personal networks. The money came from the federal CARES ACT. Crea Results CEO Fernando Pineda-Reyes said that it's unfortunate that the money took so long to trickle down through the states to the local level, but he's glad it's here now.

"If the message finally gets to these groups, because they finally get it from people they trust, that's good. That's why we are trying to get to the grassroots level, to help to end that inequity. It's not that these people didn't want to play and didn't want to go about it, they just didn't get the information before," Pineda-Reyes said.

Crea Results also assembled the care bags that include PPE and other health supplies along with booklets with information in pictures and different languages on disease prevention, isolation vs. quarantine, workers' rights about sick pay and job security, on-the-job responsibilities for both workers and employers, and contacts for organizations and government that can provide answers and free support like legal services.

2500 bags were made, and 100 of them ended up in the hands of Moreno who has vast connections in the Latinx community. She co-founded El Comite', a Longmont nonprofit that works on social justice, education and improving economic status. She recently retired from the organization after 40 years. She's 74, but said she still has the energy and passion for helping people.

Moreno calls herself the number one Burra in Longmont. "The burro is not a lazy animal," she said. "It is a hard worker. The burro does not give up. That's how I feel. I'm that type of person."

Moreno is reaching out to families she knows and taking it a step further by asking them to share the care bags with other families who have frontline workers. She's been to carnicerias and plans to go to dairies, greenhouses and other workplaces asking owners and managers if she can speak to them and the employees about what's in the bags and why it matters.

It's only been a couple of weeks, but Moreno is already hearing stories that validate the program. She said she's helping an employee whose boss told him he needed a COVID-19 test because of possible exposure at work.

She said the man went to the Boulder County Fairgrounds for a free test. But he found out he would get the results online, and he doesn't know how to navigate the internet. She said he needs a piece of paper with his results and that led him to a testing site that costs $80, which he can't afford. Moreno is trying to help him figure out if his boss should pay or what other options are available.

Thanks to Moreno and other nonprofits and individuals, the care bags are already in the hands of people who work in or own restaurants, barber shops and other businesses. BCPH is also sharing informational videos online about isolation, quarantine, workers' rights and other subjects. Once vaccinations are more widely available, that will be part of the campaign. So far, the videos are in English, but Spanish is in the works.

Everyone involved is optimistic that the campaign will have an important impact on getting the pandemic under control. "It feels like it's really the way to do the work, is to have community members involved in sharing and understanding the message with people that trust them," Goussetis said.