Open AccessCare and Precision Medicine Research in the Time of COVID-19
Author(s) -
Juliana M. Ison,
Elizabeth W. Karlson,
Jonathan D. Jackson,
A. Hille,
Cheryl McCloud,
Meg Bor,
Guohai Zhou,
Cheryl R. Clark
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
ethnicity and disease
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.767
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1945-0826
pISSN - 1049-510X
DOI - 10.18865/ed.31.3.407
Subject(s) - covid-19 , research design , psychology , health equity , medical education , family medicine , equity (law) , medline , medicine , nursing , sociology , political science , public health , disease , infectious disease (medical specialty) , pathology , virology , outbreak , law , social science
Purpose: Enhancing the bidirectional benefit of precision medicine research infrastructure may advance equity in research participation for diverse groups. This study explores the use of research infrastructure to provide human-centered COVID-19 resources to participants as a part of their research participation.Design: The All of Us New England (AoUNE) consortium research team developed standardized check-in telephone calls to ask participants about their well-being and share COVID-19 resources.Participants: A total of 20,559 participants in the AoUNE consortium received a COVID-19 check-in call.Methods: Research assistants called participants during March-April 2020, distributed COVID-19 resources to interested participants, and subsequently rated call tone.Results: Of the total cohort participants called, 8,512 (41%) spoke with a research team member. The majority of calls were rated as positive or neutral; only 3% rated as negative. African American and Black as well as Hispanic populations requested COVID-19 resources at higher rates than other groups.Conclusion: Calls made to AoUNE participants were received positively by diverse groups. These findings may have implications for participant-centered engagement strategies in precision medicine research.Ethn Dis. 2021;31(3):407-410; doi:10.18865/ed.31.3.407