About W.A.S.H.
W.A.S.H. began in July 2021 with the goal of better understanding barriers to reproductive healthcare faced by non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic/Latine women living in DC’s Wards 1, 4, 5, and 7.
We have worked with a Community Advisory Board (CAB) composed of residents from DC’s Wards 1 and 5 and are looking forward to expanding our research partnership to communities in other wards as well.
“I am usually not doing much while waiting for my clothes to be done washing and drying. It is a cool idea because not everyone has the time or energy to get educated about their healthcare so for someone to come to you sounds great.”
— 24 year old Hispanic woman
Our Aims
The goal of W.A.S.H. is to improve reproductive care among women with barriers to reproductive healthcare access. At this stage, W.A.S.H. has three key aims, two of them completed. First, we conducted a needs assessment as a first step towards the development of an educational intervention (EI) tailored to community needs that will be delivered in community laundromats. It also provided data on reproductive health knowledge and the acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of delivering the EI in a laundromat setting. We then developed an EI based on this input and the input from our Community Advisory Board. Providers working with women in DC were able to provide their feedback and thoughts on the EI, which was then tweaked. Currently, we are examining women’s experiences with the EI in community laundromats setting! We will be sure to share results from all of these steps as they become available!
