Check out the November RIM Newsletter here.
NACCHO had the opportunity to talk with leaders from the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) as well as Siloam Health. Representatives included Chi-Chi Faulk, Services Director at TIRRC, Amy Richardson, Chief Community Health Officer of Siloam Health, and Caitlin Washburn, Community Health Program Manager at Siloam Health. TIRRC is “nationally recognized for [their] multiethnic, multigenerational coalition building, effective legislative advocacy, and award-winning communications initiatives. [They] organize both individual immigrant and refugees, as well as organizations that serve immigrant and refugee communities.” Siloam is a nonprofit health care organization that serves the uninsured. Richardson noted that 90% of their clients were refugees, immigrants, or migrants.
“Nashville has one of the fastest growing immigrant populations in the country, so not as historically established as some of the states or cities, but largely increasing. Providing services in a state that does not have as long of a history of serving these community members has been exciting and challenging, both at the same time,” said Richardson.
The two nonprofits have created a partnership in the wake of COVID-19. Their local health department reached out to TIRRC asking for help with a targeted outreach as most COVID breakouts in Tennessee happened to be in RIM communities. TRRC pointed to Siloam, as they already had a community health worker program. Together, they worked to create an outreach program that targeted RIM communities in the Nashville area. Faulk described one of their strengths as the ability to get accurate information out fast and far, so they focused on getting COVID information out as fast as possible in several different languages. Through their grant, TIRRC in partnership with Siloam has been able to sponsor many events, like a backpack giveaway. Each backpack was filled with COVID information. They also held vaccine drives at local, immigrant-owned shops from trusted people within the RIM community. TIRRC uses several different outreach strategies, from small vaccine drives to large social media campaigns. Richardson noted that Nashville has a strong history of nonprofit partnership. Whether it’s a natural disaster like a hurricane or tornado, or a global pandemic like COVID, people in the Nashville community tend to step up and support each other in any way possible. Faulk also thanked the small business owners that opened up their doors to allow their vaccine drive events to be housed in a trusted location. The Tennessee refugee, immigrant, and migrant community, with support from TIRRC and Siloam health, has been able to access the healthcare that they need on a timeline that works for them. The work these two nonprofits are doing is invaluable and the relationship they have created with the RIM communities in Tennessee is one that will last a lifetime.
