Partnership Spotlight: Black Coalition Against COVID

The Black Coalition Against COVID (BCAC) is an organization that aims to provide trustworthy information to minority communities about COVID, support direct services in Washington DC as well as across the nation. Rodham Institute Founding Director, Dr. Gigi El-Bayoumi co-founded this organization in the midst of the COVID pandemic in April 2020. In 2021, the Rodham Institute appeared on the Black Coalition Against COVID Exemplar List for the creation of the ‘Don’t Miss Your Shot’ event, which administered COVID-19 vaccinations to residents in Ward 8. Partnering with Pennsylvania Avenue Baptist Church and the Far Southeast Family Strengthening Collaborative, the event brought together many residents and advocates in Ward 8 during a crucial time. The Rodham Institute conducted nine 90-minute sessions to educate staff and organizers, and these organizers went door to door to recruit residents of Ward 8 for the event. This was an event that was held exclusively for Ward 8 residents. Further, the Rodham institute and partners were able to secure non-traditional clinical spaces for administration, with the event being held at the Southeast Tennis and Learning Center, and Uber promotional codes were offered to residents to provide free transportation to and from the event. The third pillar of this event was leveraging patient experience. Offering on-site childcare, care packages, this time was used as an opportunity to educate the public about COVID-19, the pandemic, and information about vaccinations.