Branding • Events
DeKalb Public Health
Promoting health equity through mobile vaccination drives.
Background
DeKalb Public Health plays a crucial role in providing essential health services, ranging from dental care to immunizations, for a diverse community in Georgia. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, DCBOH recognized the urgent need to address health disparities and ensure equitable access to vaccinations. Working with Gordon Media Company, they had a goal to perform targeted outreach to minority communities and organize free vaccination drives.
Approach
National statistics and data from DeKalb Public Health showed that minority populations, particularly African Americans, were disproportionately affected by COVID-19. With this insight in mind, our approach focused on reaching and engaging these communities in DeKalb County, aiming to increase awareness and vaccine uptake.
Initially, we explored the idea of partnering with local churches to offer the COVID-19 vaccine. However, after extensive research and discussions with church leaders and community partners, we decided to leverage a local event that promised a high attendance.
The Decatur Arts Festival, with an annual turnout of 65,000 visitors, became our strategic choice to host a mobile vaccination site. To further incentivize participation, we provided attendees with gift cards, adding an extra level of encouragement.
Our work involved the design and placement of bold signs around the festival to draw attention, address common questions, and alleviate vaccine concerns.
Impact
The mobile vaccination campaign conducted during the Decatur Arts Festival yielded remarkable results. Within just three hours, nearly 100 attendees received their COVID-19 vaccinations. This achievement was a testament to the effectiveness of our targeted outreach efforts and the commitment of DCBOH to promoting health equity.
Through our collaboration with DeKalb Public Health, we successfully conducted a total of three mobile vaccination drives, striving to bridge health disparities and ensure equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines.