Location: Maryland

Population of Focus: Hispanic/Latino, Black/African American, and Haitian workers, workers with lower incomes, immigrant and migrant workers in the meat-processing  and farming industries

Outcome: More than 4,600 low-income rural workers and community members vaccinated

Story Shared by: Centro de los Derechos del Migrante, Inc.external iconexternal icon

The Maryland Lower Shore Vulnerable Populations Task Force convened a network of local organizations, faith leaders, and health departments to provide COVID-19 vaccines and information to community members. These services were delivered at resource fairs held throughout the region. The task force was comprised of elected officials, representatives from local organizations, and volunteers. During the early stages of the pandemic, the task force’s weekly events, dubbed One-Stop Shops, gave communities free COVID-19 testing and multilingual information alongside food aid, immigration law clinics, and other high-demand resources. When COVID-19 vaccines became available, the task force added vaccination opportunities to their events and encouraged attendance through long-standing relationships with the community. To date, the One-Stop Shops have provided vaccines to more than 4,600 individuals from low-income, rural, and under-resourced communities.

Key components of this effort included:

  • Using a mobile model that brought resource fairs to the doorsteps of communities that are geographically isolated and medically underserved.
  • Designing, with community members, COVID-19 vaccination messaging that was culturally and linguistically tailored for the communities being served.
  • Collaborating among diverse, free service providers to ensure community members’ access to COVID-19 vaccination and testing alongside other high-priority services and resources, like food aid.
  • Establishing a protocol between task force member organizations and local health department officials to ensure COVID-19 vaccine delivery.
  • Consistent, reliable event scheduling.
  • Tailoring outreach to the community before events.
  • Providing Haitian Creole and Spanish-language interpreters at all events and information in multiple languages through social media and partner networks.
  • Incorporating additional resources to overcome language and literacy barriers throughout the vaccination process.



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