By Annette Pinder

The Community Health Center of Buffalo, Inc., in collaboration with the Buffalo Documentary Project, produced and made two videos entitled Coronavirus (COVID-19) Employee Focus Group: Sharing Our Stories of Treatment and Recovery. 

“We wanted to share the experiences our staff and providers had with COVID,” said Dr. Lavonne Ansari,” Chief Executive Officer of the Community Health Center of Buffalo, Inc. (CHCB). “We know that our stories are not often heard in the communities that can benefit from them the most. With this in mind, we wanted to share our personal experiences with COVID-19 as individuals, caretakers, and family members with professional and personal responsibilities and as frontline health providers. Our discussions highlighted the facts and hardships of this disease,” said Dr. Ansari.

The videos feature employees and providers, with discussions moderated by Dr. Ansari. Participants shared their unique experiences, including how they contracted COVID, the wide spectrum of symptoms they experienced, the treatment they received, and the challenges they faced with extended illness and survival. They also shared how COVID impacted their families, and their observations and understanding of how racial inequities impact the broader healthcare system.

“There are a lot of myths out there about COVID-19, so we wanted to share the perspectives of those of us working on the frontlines in healthcare, as well as those who have actually contracted this disease. We know that sharing our personal stories would be an impactful way to educate others,” said Dr. Ansari.

To watch the shows see: Sharing Employee Stories of COVID Treatment and Recovery – Part I and 2 at https://tinyurl.com/s6wh2ndz and https://tinyurl.com/s6wh2ndz.