THURS-004 - Power Sharing and Policy Action Planning: Cbos and Community Members Addressing Social Determinants of Health

Brief Abstract Summary: The COVID-19 Equity Rebuilding for Resilient Communities (CERRC) task force improved partnerships and power sharing between three community-based organizations (CBOs) and ten Community Advisory Board (CAB) members seeking to address housing insecurity and healthcare access. Through their monthly meetings, community members and CBO representatives shared their lived experiences, policy concerns, and expertise to co-develop policy action plans for each of their priority areas. The collaboration between the CBOs and CAB highlighted the importance of power sharing, co-planning, and navigating unexpected challenges as a group.

Detailed abstract description:

Background:
The COVID-19 Equity Rebuilding for Resilient Communities (CERRC) Task force was a collaboration between 3 Community-based organizations and 10 community residents with the purpose of engaging the broader community in advancing equitable Policy, Systems, and Environmental (PSE) change in Southeast Los Angeles and Orange County to rebuild from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods:
The project team engaged the CERRC task force in monthly meetings where the group would share their lived experiences, collectively make decisions about the direction of the task force, and identify the areas of policy for the development of a policy action plan. The collaboration between task force members aimed to build a space for power-sharing between the group, as well as use their individual expertise to identify policy priorities and advance PSE strategies. The CERRC task force gradually transitioned to have the members take ownerships over planning, facilitation, and decision making for the direction of the group via rotational leadership to ensure everyone’s voice was being incorporated.

Results:
Through participatory approaches, the CERRC task force (1) built infrastructure for shared power (2) identified healthcare access and housing insecurity as the two shared priorities, and (3) completed two policy action plans. The collaboration between community members and CBOs within the task force allowed for the development of an community/CBO engagement model that can be replicated with other groups, as well as demonstrating the importance of power sharing and building a pathway for engagement between stakeholders in order to promote policy change initiatives where those impacted are decision makers.

Challenges:
Challenges arose in ensuring equitable participation within the task force. Additional capacity building was needed to support community residents in understanding their position within the task force and feeling empowered to take up space within the structure. Additionally, pivots were needed to respond to local emergencies, which created some disruptions for the work, but also gave additional opportunities for community leadership.

Lessons Learned:
It is important to set clear communication of the parameters of the work for members to improve confidence in co-planning for the sessions.
Reciprocal capacity-building is required for long-term equitable power-building. It is necessary to support CBOs to learn and practice community-centered engagement efforts.
It is important to provide spaces for relationship building between both groups beyond the task-oriented meetings, as it increases trust and improves collaboration.