Open AccessCross-Sector Monitoring and Evaluation Framework: Social, Economic, and Health Conditions Impacted During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Author(s) -
Eva Wong,
Abigail Schachter,
Hannah N. Collins,
Lin Song,
Myduc Ta,
Shuva Dawadi,
Scott Neal,
Fel F. Pajimula,
Danny V. Colombara,
Kristen Johnson,
Amy A. Laurent
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.2021.306422
Subject(s) - unemployment , public health , pandemic , health equity , mental health , social determinants of health , unintended consequences , health policy , environmental health , economic growth , medicine , political science , covid-19 , nursing , economics , psychiatry , disease , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , law
Public Health 3.0 approaches are critical for monitoring disparities in economic, social, and overall health impacts following the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated policy changes to slow community spread. Timely, cross-sector data as identified using this approach help decisionmakers identify changes, track racial disparities, and address unintended consequences during a pandemic. We applied a monitoring and evaluation framework that combined policy changes with timely, relevant cross-sector data and community review. Indicators covered unemployment, basic needs, family violence, education, childcare, access to health care, and mental, physical, and behavioral health. In response to increasing COVID-19 cases, nonpharmaceutical intervention strategies were implemented in March 2020 in King County, Washington. By December 2020, 554 000 unemployment claims were filed. Social service calls increased 100%, behavioral health crisis calls increased 25%, and domestic violence calls increased 25%, with disproportionate impact on communities of color. This framework can be replicated by local jurisdictions to inform and address racial inequities in ongoing COVID-19 mitigation and recovery. Cross-sector collaboration between public health and sectors addressing the social determinants of health are an essential first step to have an impact on long-standing racial inequities. ( Am J Public Health . 2021;111(S3):S215-S223. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306422).