OBJECTIVE: We sought to follow Haraway\'s concept of \"situated knowledges,\" whereby no one truth exists, and information is understood within its context, to understand the exertions of expertise surrounding vaccines. We focused on perceptions of power among a BIPOC community during a relatively unexamined moment, wherein the status of the pandemic and steps to prevent it were particularly uncertain.
METHODS: We report the findings of ten focus groups conducted among members of Rhode Island\'s Latine/Hispanic communities between December 2021 and May 2022. We called this time COVID-19\'s liminal moment because vaccines were distributed, mandates were lifted, vaccine efficacy was doubted, and new strains spread. We translated, transcribed, and analyzed focus groups using thematic analysis.
RESULTS: Community-member (n = 65) perceptions of control aligned with three key themes: (1) no power is capable of controlling COVID-19, (2) we are the objects of scientific and political powers, and (3) we, as individuals and communities, can control COVID-19 through our decisions and actions.
CONCLUSIONS: By centering the perspectives of a minoritized community, we situated the scientific knowledge produced about COVID-19 within the realities of imperfect interventions, uncontrollable situations, and medical power-exertions. We argue that medical knowledge should not be assumed implicitly trustworthy, or even capable, but instead seen as one of many products of human labor within human systems. Trust and trustworthiness must be mutually negotiated between experts, contexts, and communities through communication, empowerment, and justice.
目的:我们试图遵循Haraway的“位置知识”概念,“因此,没有一个真理存在,信息在其上下文中被理解,了解围绕疫苗的专业知识。我们专注于BIPOC社区在一个相对未经审查的时刻对权力的看法,其中大流行的状态和预防大流行的步骤尤其不确定。
方法:我们报告了2021年12月至2022年5月在罗德岛拉丁裔/西班牙裔社区成员中进行的十个焦点小组的发现。我们称之为COVID-19的边缘时刻,因为疫苗已经分发,任务被解除,疫苗功效受到怀疑,和新的菌株传播。我们翻译,转录,并使用主题分析法分析焦点小组。
结果:社区成员(n=65)对控制的看法与三个关键主题一致:(1)没有权力能够控制COVID-19,(2)我们是科学和政治权力的对象,(3)我们,作为个人和社区,可以通过我们的决定和行动控制COVID-19。
结论:通过集中于少数民族社区的观点,我们将有关COVID-19的科学知识置于不完善干预措施的现实中,无法控制的情况,和医疗力量的发挥。我们认为医学知识不应该被认为是含蓄地可信的,甚至有能力,而是被视为人类系统中许多人类劳动产品之一。信任和可信赖度必须在专家之间相互协商,上下文,和社区通过沟通,赋权,和正义。