She recalled the days of the “Delta surge” — when the Delta variant became the most prevalent form of COVID-19 in late 2021 — when “I had somebody swabbing over 200 people single-handedly,” contrasting it with recent days when “numbers have kind of trickled down.”
But James said in a phone interview that she’s aware of continuing need in a community where patients who have experienced health disparities can now receive individualized care.
Part of the Inner-City Muslim Action Network team pose together in Chicago in May 2021. Photo courtesy of IMAN
“It’s all about access,” she said from the retrofitted recreational vehicle that serves as the Inner-City Muslim Action Network’s mobile clinic. “As long as we can do it and there are people who want it, yeah, we’re going to keep going.”
Yusuf Ransome, a scholar at Yale School of Public Health, said his research has shown that some of the areas of New York City that had the highest rates of COVID-19 were areas predominated by African Americans. But his team also found that in the years just prior to the pandemic, many churches in those areas had shut down, depriving not only their members but the surrounding communities of medical support.
Yusuf Ransome. Photo by Robert A. Lisak
Ransome sees potential in the kinds of partnerships between African American churches and health professionals formed during the pandemic.
“I do think that there is room to think about what else can we do beyond the one-per-year kind of diabetes or hypertension screening,” he said. “Can we actually build something much more formal so that we don’t have to wait till the next pandemic to figure out what to do?”
Dr. Miriam Burnett, medical director of the African Methodist Episcopal Church’s health commission, said her denomination is already operating from that perspective. She said her commission is looking ahead, with plans to help schoolchildren have all the other shots they need as they start school in the fall.
“Our plan is to never stop this program,” Burnett said of AME churches like Cavaness’ that continue to provide vaccinations. “The next pandemic is coming around the corner and we want to continue to have in place a mechanism that will allow us to adjust and adjust quickly.”
This article originally appeared here.
