Virtual Community Health Workers: Approaches to Patient Outreach During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Authors: Ari M. Fish, Emily Romano, Paula Ostroff, Deborah Ziring, Brandon George, Rosemary Frasso, Geoffrey Hayden

In this retrospective analysis, researchers sought to determine which techniques were best used by CHWs in contacting patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers examined the reach rate, or rate of successfully contacting a patient, of three different calling methods: the use of a blocked caller-ID, use of Google Voice, and use of Doximity Dialer, a technology that allows health care workers to determine their own ten-digit phone number. Outreach calls were placed by four CHWs in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., from March to May 2020. Overall, nearly 1,200 outreach calls were made during the study period. After analysis, researchers determined that calls made using Doximity Dialer were most likely to be answered by patients while calls made anonymously were least likely to be answered. As COVID-19 has permanently changed the health care landscape, this study informs best approaches for CHWs to reach patients in a telehealth context.