California partnership aided COVID-19 response and health equity, report finds

The COVID-19 pandemic did not affect everyone equally. Communities of color, especially Latino (including undocumented persons), Black, and Native American groups, as well as people with low incomes, experienced much higher rates of infection, hospitalization, and death.

Research has shown that several key factors worsened health inequalities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Crowded housing, dense neighborhoods, and location played a major role in how the virus spread. Systemic racism, discrimination, and unstable jobs made some communities even more at risk.

A new report, published in Health Expectations, highlights how the Share, Trust, Organize, Partner COVID-19 California Alliance, known as STOP COVID-19 CA, helped address these challenges. Formed in 2020 as part of the federal pandemic response, the network brought together 11 universities, including the University of California, Riverside, and more than 75 community organizations across 14 counties. Together, they focused on reaching communities most affected by COVID-19 and improving access to reliable information, testing, and vaccination, while laying the foundation for long-term health equity.

"Our evaluation looks at how a state-wide network helped strengthen partnerships between communities and researchers so they could work together to tackle health inequalities in underserved communities during the COVID-19 pandemic," said Ann Cheney, senior author of the report and a professor of social medicine, population, and public health in the UC Riverside School of Medicine. "What made this network different was its community-first approach. Local organizations and grassroots leaders didn't just participate; they led."

From shaping research questions to collecting data and writing reports, community partners contributed at every step, helping ensure that the work stayed grounded in real-life community needs and socio-cultural and economic contexts, rather than being driven by academic theory alone.

Between August 2020 and December 2021, STOP COVID-19 CA surveyed more than 11,000 Californians, conducted dozens of focus groups, participated in clinical trials, and organized hundreds of events - from town halls to vaccination clinics. Community health workers, known as promotoras, helped design and deliver health information in ways that resonated with local culture and language.

Cheney explained that in 2024 the network used a participatory and community-based evaluation method called Ripple Effects Mapping to better understand the network's impact. The method showed that the network not only improved COVID-19 response efforts, but also strengthened relationships between community and academic partners, improved communication, and built lasting skills for future collaboration.

"Our report also points to bigger lessons," Cheney said. "While the network made significant progress, participants noted the need for broader changes, especially in how universities work with community groups and how funding is shared. Ultimately, STOP COVID-19 CA showed that when communities are respected as leaders and equal partners, the results are more effective and more lasting."

The report found the network helped communities not only respond to an emergency but also begin to reshape public health responses to better serve those most impacted by inequality. According to the report, STOP COVID-19 CA remains a model for how researchers and communities can work together to advance health equity.

"By combining academic expertise with local knowledge and leadership, the network showed what is possible when collaboration is rooted in trust, respect, and shared purpose," Cheney said. "Beyond helping with urgent needs like COVID-19 testing and vaccines, the network also laid the groundwork for lasting changes to support ongoing community involvement in health equity research. It stands as a model for how diverse communities - across cultures, languages, and regions - can come together with researchers to tackle health disparities."

Cheney's coauthors on the report are academic partners at UCR and UC San Diego, as well as community partners at Conchita Servicios de la Comunidad in Mecca, California, and Global Action Research Center in San Diego.

The research was supported by a grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health.

The title of the paper, led by first author Evelyn Vázquez who was formerly at UCR, is "Ripple Effects Mapping: Evaluating Multilevel Perspectives and Impacts of a State-Wide Community Academic Partnership Network on COVID-19 Health Disparities."