To engage low-income community members in prioritizing programs addressing specific social drivers of health during the COVID-19 pandemic through informed deliberation.
Key Findings:
Deliberative methods can effectively engage underrepresented community voices in public health priority setting, leading to more comprehensive health care priorities.
Participants identified a broader range of health care priorities compared to professionals, highlighting the value of community input.
The CHAT method facilitated informed discussions and collective decision-making, enhancing the deliberative process.
Interpretation:
Engaging communities through deliberative processes enhances the relevance and responsiveness of public health funding decisions, particularly for marginalized populations.
Limitations:
Challenges in recruiting Spanish-speaking participants limited the diversity of the sample, potentially affecting the representativeness of the findings.
The virtual format may not fully capture the complexities of in-person deliberation, which could influence the depth of discussions.
Conclusion:
Informed deliberation is a promising approach to prioritize community needs in public health spending, particularly in the context of ongoing health disparities exacerbated by the pandemic, suggesting a need for policy shifts.
