COVID-19
Conditions
Brief summary
This study will determine the effectiveness of training church health ministers to educate their congregations about the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines and booster shots for decreasing vaccine hesitancy and improving testing knowledge in underserved Black communities.
Detailed description
This study will determine the effectiveness of training church health ministers to educate their congregations about the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines and booster shots for decreasing vaccine hesitancy and improving testing knowledge in underserved Black communities. A total of 98 participants from three-to-five churches will be randomized to an intervention group that will receive counseling from their health ministers on the benefits of getting vaccinated, boosted, and tested, or to a delayed intervention control group. The effects of the intervention on the primary outcome, change in vaccine/booster hesitancy, will be assessed by a questionnaire that will be administered to both groups at baseline and after three weeks. Following the three-week control period, the delayed intervention control group will also receive the intervention and again be administered the questionnaire. Questionnaires will be used to obtain more granular information on sources of vaccine/booster hesitancy and for their vaccine-related decisions.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALActive Intervention Group
The intervention will involve meetings with the church health ministers to discuss COVID-19 vaccines and booster shots.
Sponsors
Pennington Biomedical Research Center
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
DOUBLE (Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Age ≥ 18 y * Not having received an initial COVID-19 vaccine or a booster vaccine at the recommended interval * Having vaccine or booster hesitancy * Able to understand and speak English * Willing to engage with the church's health ministry via in-person or virtual/phone sessions
Exclusion criteria
* None
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change in COVID-19 Vaccine/Booster Hesitancy from Baseline to 3 Weeks | Baseline and three weeks | Vaccine hesitancy will be measured in those who indicate that they have not received the initial vaccine in a single or 2-series protocol using a single question: How likely are you to get an approved COVID-19 vaccine? Responses are recorded on a 7-point scale, with 1 being not at all likely and 7 being very likely. Vaccine hesitancy will be defined as a score of 1 to 4 on the scale. Among individuals who have received the initial vaccine series, but not the booster, booster hesitancy will be measured using the following question: How likely are you to get an approved COVID-19 booster shot? Responses are recorded on a 7-point scale, with 1 being not at all likely and 7 being very likely. Booster hesitancy will be defined as a score of 1 to 4 on the scale. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change in Vaccine/Booster Uptake from Baseline to 3 Weeks | Baseline and three weeks | Change in vaccine or booster status |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed