01

COVID-19 Impact Survey in North Carolina

In North Carolina, the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted disproportionate health outcomes that persist within historically marginalized populations despite the surveillance and intervention efforts implemented to curb the pandemic.

The HBCU Health Equity Data Consortium was established to utilize the strategic collaborations of HBCUs and their partners across North Carolina to expand health disparity research and data equity among historically marginalized populations.

With funding from the NC Division of Public Health, HBCU HEDC expanded COVID-19 surveillance data among North Carolina’s six Medicaid regions to fill significant data gaps in comprehending the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on these communities.

Phase 1 involved Winston-Salem State University, Johnson C. Smith University, and Elizabeth City State University. This allowed for a regional approach to public health surveillance, with each institution representing a North Carolina Medicaid region.

Phase 2 involved Shaw University, North Carolina Central University, Western Carolina University, Appalachian State University, Fayetteville State University, and UNC Pembroke. Incorporating these additional six institutions allowed the HBCU HEDC to improve the survey and build greater capacity among partners in each Medicaid region.

Currently, both institutions are focused on disseminating information back to their communities and assessing how they can further build capacity for their institutions around health disparity research.

02

NC DPH Data Workforce Modernization Initiative

The North Carolina Division of Public Health (NC DPH) aims to leverage the infrastructure build with the HBCU HEDC in their COVID-19 Impact Survey initiative to assess data science positions across North Carolina. The HBCU HEDC will determine what capacity and expertise building programs are needed to improve data science positions across state and local health departments. In strengthening the public health infrastructure of our state related to workforce, foundational capabilities, and data modernization, the HBCU HEDC intends to expand data equity practices and equitable approaches to community engagement among this public health workforce.

This work is funded by the CDC’s Public Health Infrastructure Grant through a partnership with NC DPH and is grounded in the following principles: the need for data and evidence to drive planning and implementation, the critical role that partnerships play in success, and the imperative to direct resources in a way that supports health equity.