Publications by authors named "A Lomeli"
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing disparities in healthcare access and outcomes, particularly among underserved communities. As one site participating in the NIH-funded Community Engagement Alliance Against COVID-19, our focus was to address COVID-19 disparities by training immigrant and refugee communities to advocate for their needs by increasing capacity to campaign for policy-level changes.
Objective: To evaluate the impact of a train-the-trainer policy advocacy program for ethnically-based community leaders within San Diego County using a mixed-methods evaluation.
Objective: Pet ownership among people experiencing homelessness (PEH) is common, but access to shelter, veterinary care, and flea-preventative products for PEH who own pets in the US is not well described. We sought to evaluate current knowledge of fleas and flea-borne diseases and characterize practices around pets and service animals among staff at homeless shelters and outreach organizations.
Methods: In-person surveys were administered to staff at homeless shelters and on outreach teams in 7 states from August 2022 to April 2023 to evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and practices and to assess homeless shelter/organizational characteristics.
Article Synopsis
- The COVID-19 pandemic revealed health disparities in underserved Latino/a communities, particularly regarding testing access.
- The CO-CREATE project developed a community-driven, culturally-tailored COVID-19 testing program in San Ysidro in partnership with local health organizations.
- Over two years, the program provided 24,422 tests to a primarily Latino/a population, significantly enhancing testing rates and emphasizing the need for future public health strategies to improve access for underserved communities.
Background: Wearing a mask was a crucial component in slowing the COVID-19 pandemic. However, little is known about the intersectionality between mask usage, risk perception, and infection. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether risk perceptions and masking behaviors are associated with contracting SARS-CoV-2 and how contracting SARS-CoV-2 subsequently changes masking behaviors in specific situations.
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- Louse-borne Bartonella quintana and flea-borne murine typhus are serious diseases affecting people experiencing homelessness in the US, but service staff's awareness and prevention knowledge is limited.
- A survey of 333 staff from 89 shelters across seven states revealed that while most recognize the problem of body lice and fleas, only about half understand their disease transmission potential, and less than 25% can describe proper management protocols.
- There are significant gaps in understanding among staff regarding these diseases, highlighting the need for training to improve prevention efforts and ensure equitable service access for affected individuals.