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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Infectious Diseases: Epidemiology and Prevention
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1412947

Rapid Methods for Multi-Level Dissemination of Neutralizing Monoclonal Antibody Treatment for COVID-19 Outpatients: Designing for Dissemination Using the Fit to Context Framework

Provisionally accepted
Bethany M. Kwan Bethany M. Kwan 1*Chelsea Sobczak Chelsea Sobczak 1Lindsey E. Fish Lindsey E. Fish 1,2Adit A. Ginde Adit A. Ginde 1Gillian Grant Gillian Grant 3Mika Hamer Mika Hamer 1Kyle Leggott Kyle Leggott 1Vanessa Owen Vanessa Owen 1Jenna Reno Jenna Reno 1Justin Shrader Justin Shrader 1Lindsey Whittington Lindsey Whittington 4Jenn L. Jones Jenn L. Jones 1Ramona Koren Ramona Koren 1Joel A. Begay Joel A. Begay 1Vall Vinaithirthan Vall Vinaithirthan 1Hillary D. Lum Hillary D. Lum 1
  • 1 University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States
  • 2 Denver Health & Hospital Authority, Denver, Colorado, United States
  • 3 Trailhead Institute, Denver, United States
  • 4 Colorado Health Institute, Denver, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Introduction: Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an urgent need for the rapid and equitable translation of knowledge and effective treatments to reach vulnerable populations in response to the ever-shifting pandemic environment. The approval of neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) for treatment of outpatient COVID-19 resulted in a need to rapidly design dissemination strategies to increase awareness and equitable access for community members and healthcare providers.Materials & Methods: We used the Fit to Context (F2C) Framework for Designing for Dissemination and Sustainability to a) design products such as messages and materials, and b) disseminate the products. We leveraged existing partnerships (e.g., community members, health system leaders, Regional Health Connectors, public health agencies, policymakers, and others) for activities including a) advising on contextual implementation challenges and opportunities; b) convening a stakeholder advisory panel; c) rapid feedback on product reach and impact; and d) serving as potential product adopters and distributors. We used concurrent data collection and co-design with rapid, iterative prototyping. We used real-world data to evaluate impact of D&I strategies on mAb use in Colorado.Results: Moving through the F2C Framework phases, we assessed mAb implementation and access barriers and facilitators, identified partner priorities, co-designed messages and materials for multiple audiences, and disseminated through audience-specific communication channels. An emphasis on equity led to tailoring materials to communities with lower health literacy, underand uninsured groups, Spanish-speaking communities, Native American communities, and rural areas. Dissemination messages, materials, and distribution strategies were updated frequently based on emerging data on COVID-19 treatment effectiveness and availability. Real-world data revealed more than 400% increase in both referrals and number of unique referring providers, with the greatest impact on underserved communities. This was accomplished in under 9 months.The Fit to Context Framework for Designing for Dissemination and Sustainability is a novel process framework that can inform a rapid, iterative dissemination strategy. The COVID-19 pandemic presented an opportunity to learn better ways to speed translation of evidence to practice and enhance equitable access to evidence-based care. The mAb Colorado project demonstrated the importance of having strong community-academic-public health partnerships and leveraging existing capacity to enhance adoption and reach.

    Keywords: designing for dissemination1, rapid research methods2, monoclonal antibody treatment3, Covid-194, community engagement5, participatory co-design6

    Received: 06 Apr 2024; Accepted: 15 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Kwan, Sobczak, Fish, Ginde, Grant, Hamer, Leggott, Owen, Reno, Shrader, Whittington, Jones, Koren, Begay, Vinaithirthan and Lum. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Bethany M. Kwan, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.