HAIR Wellness Warriors have come together from across the nation to protect communities from ravages of the flu and COVID-19 as well as cancer screenings, lupus, clinical research and diabetes by providing education and outreach through barbershops and salons.

In order to save lives during this unprecedented time, communities need to get vaccinated quickly  – and addressing the underlying reasons why people are unsure about getting vaccinated will require an approach that focuses at the hyperlocal level to understand people’s beliefs and concerns, encourage conversation, and spark a vaccination movement at the community level.

The Health Advocates In-Reach and Research (a.k.a. HAIR) Wellness Warriors has partnered with the National Minority Quality Forum’s Center for Sustainable Health Care and Equity (NMQF-SHC) Health Champions Program to expand the Wellness Warriors program, which is deeply rooted and successful in the Baltimore, Md., region, to 10 additional geographical locations across the country to increase both awareness and COVID-19 and influenza vaccination rates in African American and Hispanic communities.

Meet some Wellness Warriors
who are making a difference!

  • Aaron Perry
  • Terrie Branch
  • Willie Lightfoot
  • Sandra Jenkins

Find A Wellness Warrior


Influenza and COVID-19 Rapid Response Training for Barbers and Stylists

Welcome to the COVID-19 Rapid Response training space. Watch the brief video below to get an introduction to the initiative.

Welcome to Our Training Space
Please begin your journey by viewing this introduction hosted by Dr. Reed Tuckson, titled "Making It Plain: The Colors of COVID-19--Barbershop and Salons from Vaccine Hesitancy to Confidence."

Shots at the Shop

What We Need to Know

The purpose of this module is to provide information about the COVID-19 disease including the risk of long haul syndrome and the role of vaccines to mitigate the most severe disease outcomes. Additionally, the role of Black people in the clinical trials will be discussed. This module will take approximately 30 minutes to complete.

 

Michele Andrasik
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
1100 Fairview Avenue N, E3-300
Seattle, WA 98109
Email: mandrasik@fredhutch.org

Lessons From the Front Lines of Vaccine Access and Hesitancy

The purpose of this module is to introduce current public health interventions regarding COVID-19 vaccine access and hesitancy and to describe how these interventions could influence the impact of the pandemic on communities of color.

George Askew, MD, FAAP

Deputy Chief Administrative Officer for Health, Human Services, and Education
for Prince George’s County, Maryland.

Communicating Information about Covid-19

The purpose of this module is to prepare you to productively communicate information about COVID-19, especially to clients and people who may have very different attitudes towards the COVID-19 pandemic. How you talk about vaccines with others is important to what they decide. This will also help you to be prepared to answer common questions and concerns. This module will take approximately 38 minutes to complete.

Connecting with Local Public Health

The purpose of this module is to help barbers and stylists engage local health departments and hospitals as clinical partners who can operate a vaccination clinic in or near their places of business. The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) will provide local guidance and facilitate connections. This module will take approximately 10 minutes to complete.

Resources

The Maryland Center for Health Equity has an online archive full of articles about Health Equity that you can read free of charge.

If you are interested in Health Equity, Health Disparities, and what we can do to make our communities healthier, check out articles on the Archive

Click here to access the Minority Health and Health Equity Archive

Ensuring COVID-19 Vaccine Safety in the US

Finding Credible Vaccine Information

Are COVID-19 Vaccines safe if I have Kidney Disease?
COVID-19 and Kidney Disease

Are COVID-19 Vaccines recommended if I have Diabetes?
COVID-19 and Diabetes

Greater than COVID
Informational Materials in English and Spanish
Greater than COVID YouTube Channel
Kids & COVID Vaccines Playlist
Downloadable Materials

News

Frequently Asked Questions

We focus on Barbers and Stylists across the country. Right now, you can find us in Alabama, California, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin.

We believe that Barbers and Stylists hold a unique position in their community to help promote health. We aim to create Trusted Information Centers in the shops so those in the community can feel confident in the educational materials they receive in the Shop.

If you would like to be a Wellness Warrior or would like to get more information please email Chris Scurlock, cscurlock@hcdi.com.

Please Fill out Our Questions Form.

Our Partners

Stephen B. Thomas, faculty member of the School of Public Health at the University of Maryland

Dr. Stephan Thomas
Director, Maryland Center for Health Equity
Professor, UMD School of Public Health

Meg Jordan
Faculty Research Assistant at the Maryland Center for Health Equity
CommuniVax Study Coordinator
University of Maryland School of Public Health

Jaleh Montazer, MPH
Project Coordinator

Surayyah Khan
Community Partner Specialist

Sarah Hurlbert, MPH
Program Evaluator

Mike Brown
Certified Community Health Worker

Katrina Randolph
Certified Community Health Worker

Fred Spry
Certified Community Health Worker

Learn more about The Maryland Center for Health Equity

Mrs. Jean Drummond
Executive Director, ICCI

Chris Scurlock
Community Outreach Lead

Learn more about ICCI

Reginal Lewis
Sr. Integrated Marketing Specialist

Michelle Royal Vessels
Senior Integrated Solutions Executive

Learn more about Urban One

Luminis Health
Learn more about Luminis Health

University of Maryland Capital Region Health
Learn more about UM Capital Region

MedStar Health
Learn more about MedStar

Adventist HealthCare
Learn more about Adventist