NTG Collaborative Study of COVID-19 Impact on Provider Agencies

The aim of this internet-based survey was to obtain information from community-based organizations (CBOs) affiliated with ACCSES, a national provider association based in Washington DC, as to what types of difficulties provider agencies were encountering during a transitional phase of the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. The study was conducted in collaboration with the University of Illinois at Chicago in the summer of 2020.

Key Findings

- CBOs providing direct services noted experiencing contagion, lockdowns, loss of staff, challenges in obtaining PPEs, and lack of state or federal guidance.

- Maintaining safe living environments and coping with infected staff and clientele were urgent concerns.

- CBOs reported financial and clinical support challenges, as well as staffing problems.

- Testing availability, lack of sufficient PPEs, dealing with clientele and staff boredom during lockdowns, and increased costs for equipment and staff (with no commensurate increases in fees) were noted as problems.

- Re-opening challenges were reported, including funding, staffing, PPEs, liability, and lack of guidance. CBOs found ways to work-around some programmatic issues, by using telehealth, drive-by visits, instituting rigorous safety measures, and offering virtual services, when possible