From April 2021 to October 2021, a group of community based organizations and physician scientists came together to provide evidence-based guidelines to communities and health workers across rural India. This voluntary network was called the Community Science Alliance (CSA), and it provided contextually relevant and scientifically sound COVID-19 monitoring and treatment strategies in resource-constrained settings.

Core members of the CSA met for several hours daily, and across time zones, to develop training modules, offer peer-support to community-based organizations and generate evidence for the feasibility of a less resource-intensive approach to COVID-19 care, in the setting of suspended livelihoods, threatened food security, and limited access to healthcare during the pandemic.

This initiative was initially anchored at the Swasth Alliance, that served as secretariat to facilitate weekly meetings and dissemination of resources. The CSA partnered with community based organizations in India including Basic Health Services, JSS, Sangwari, LabourNet, MAHAN Trust, and others; Noora Health; and the NORM initiative with Yale University. This Community of Practice met weekly for months to exchange lessons from the field and best practices in implementing scientifically rigorous care pathways in challenging circumstances.