Experiences of Peer Navigators Implementing an Equity-Focused Intervention to Improve COVID-19 Testing and Vaccination Among Spanish-Speaking Latines in the U.S. South

The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affected Latine communities in the United States, with Spanish-speaking Latine populations having higher rates of infection, hospitalization, and mortality. Our community-based participatory research partnership developed and in 2023 implemented and evaluated Nuestra Comunidad Saludable ( Our Healthy Community ), a Spanish-language intervention designed to increase COVID-19 testing and vaccination through community-based peer navigation and mHealth. After follow-up data collection, individual in-depth interviews were conducted in Spanish in 2024 with 10 community-based peer navigators, known as Navegantes , to understand their experiences implementing the intervention. Themes were identified through constant comparison. All Navegantes were native Spanish speakers, with a mean age of 45.7 ( SD = 12.6, range: 21–66), and immigrated from seven Latin American countries. Fifteen themes emerged within four domains: (1) Navegante Engagement (e.g., Navegantes were highly committed to the intervention); (2) Training and Support (e.g., Activity Logs offered Navegantes “cues to action” and structure for tracking and reporting intervention activities); (3) Implementation Experiences (e.g., Navegante s were able to tailor and personalize COVID-19 messaging to meet the unique needs of each member of their social networks); and (4) Future Directions (e.g., an intervention like Nuestra Comunidad Saludable could be implemented to address other health issues within Latine communities). Interviews identified important learnings about Navegantes ’ experiences implementing the Nuestra Comunidad Saludable intervention. They also revealed valuable insights into the COVID-19 pandemic, barriers to accessing resources, and Latine community health needs and priorities that warrant future exploration and intervention.