A Scoping Review on the Impact of COVID 19 on Vulnerable Populations: LGBTQ+ Persons, Persons Experiencing Homelessness, and Migrant Farm Workers in the US.

Abstract

Purpose: The goal of the National Center for Medical Education Development and Research Center (NCMEDR) is to support the education and training of medical students in the care of vulnerable populations. Access to primary care services in the US is fundamental to the health and wellness of all people regardless of their socioeconomic status. LGBQ+ persons, (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other sexual and gender minority), Persons Experiencing Homelessness (PEH), and Migrant Farm Workers (MFW) are among the most underserved, marginalized, and socially vulnerable groups in the US. NCMEDR in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at Meharry Medical College was established in part, with funding from the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). NCMEDR was developed to provide educational pathways for transforming medical education and clinical practice in the US by ascertaining whether medical students were being trained to provide primary care, and behavioral health services to LGBTQ+ persons, PEH, and MFW. Here we focus on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on these specific populations because they represent marginalized groups that have been heavily impacted by the pandemic, have poor social determinants of health (SDOH), and are more likely to be uninsured, and are less likely to engage primary care providers outside of emergency room care.

Methods: In this study, a scoping literature review was conducted to assess the impact of COVID-19 on primary care of LQBTQ+ persons, PEH, and MFW.

Results and discussion: The pandemic provided a serious health disparities gap for the defined vulnerable populations under review by the NCMEDR. The pandemic identified the need for transformative measures for clinical practices, medical education, and health care policies required for implementation to improve health care for vulnerable groups. We make recommendations for interventions with defined populations that may influence clinical, environmental health, and SDOH in the COVID era.

Conclusions: The COVID pandemic directed the need for medical schools, health care and social organizations to intervene in new and different ways in vulnerable and marginalized communities. The recommendations provide a model for advancing health equity, access, quality, utilization, care coordination, and treatment.