CACHW.org

Who is a Community Health Worker?

NACHW (APHA Definition)

The National Association of Community Health Workers (NACHW) and many CHW advocacy collaboratives, alliances and associations across the USA are using the APHA- Community Health Worker Section (APHA)definition

"A Community Health Worker (CHW) is a frontline public health worker who is a trusted member of and/or has an unusually close understanding of the community served. This trusting relationship enables the CHW to serve as a liaison/link/intermediary between health/social services and the community to facilitate access to services and improve the quality and cultural competence of service delivery. A CHW also builds individual and community capacity by increasing health knowledge and self-sufficiency through a range of activities such as outreach, community education, informal counseling, social support and advocacy."

California Community Health Worker Learning Collaborative

Proposed Vision

A multiculturally inclusive Community Health Worker (CHW) learning collaborative that advances the CHW role and scope of practice and amplifies their voices in achieving health equity and social justice within the full spectrum of practice settings in California.

Proposed Mission

To promote sustainable integration and professional recognition of the Community Health Worker workforce through partnerships, leadership development, education, training, capacity building, community organizing, and policy advocacy.

Values/Principles

Promote CHW leadership and self determination
Be inclusive of multicultural diversity
Honor mutual respect
Advocate with compassion and commitment
Inspire collaborative learning with the freedom to explore innovative ideas
Work towards health for all, equity and social justice
Work towards immigration reform
Community based resilience

Quotes

"A community is a place where every person knows that they can have a say in what is happening, every person knows how to make themselves heard and is respected for their contribution, and every person listens to understand ". Anonymous

“The widespread incorporation of CHWs into the health delivery system offers unparalleled opportunities to improve the delivery of preventive and primary care to America’s diverse communities.”

-Pew Health Professions Commission, 1994

Organizational Development Retreat ( Part 2)

TBD

Bureau of Labor and statistics

Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) 21-1094

Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS)Standard Occupational Classification (SOC)

21-1094

Community Health Workers Assist individuals and communities to adopt healthy behaviors. Conduct outreach for medical personnel or health organizations to implement programs in the community that promote, maintain, and improve individual and community health. May provide information on available resources, provide social support and informal counseling, advocate for individuals and community health needs, and provide services such as first aid and blood pressure screening. May collect data to help identify community health needs. Excludes “Health Educators” (21-1091).

Illustrative examples: Peer Health Promoter, Lay Health Advocate

Broad Occupation: 21-1090 Miscellaneous Community and Social Service Specialists
Minor Group: 21-1000 Counselors, Social Workers, and Other Community and Social Service Specialists
Major Group: 21-0000 Community and Social Service Occupations

Peer Support Specialist The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics does not collect data specifically on peer support specialists. Instead, it counts them among community health workers, of which 51,900 were employed in May 2016.

Alligment with Community-Based Workforce Principles

Community-Based Workforce Principles

Community- Based Workforce Alliance;

Partners: Health Begins; Health Leads; NACHW

Principle 1: Recruit & manage with a racial equity framework

Principle 2: Invest in trusted voices, including Community Health Workers

Principle 3: Strengthen connections with psychosocial services & systems

Principle 4: Launch a community-based jobs program as a force multiplier

Principle 5: Embed job training & pipelines to local careers

Principle 6: Strengthen community infrastructure & financing

What do CHW do?

What is a CHW?

Core Roles and Competencies from the C3 Project Nov 28, 2018

Becoming a Community Health Worker

Two City Colloge of San Francisco CHW program talk about becoming a Community Health Worker

Community Health Worker "Saw Me as Human"

Magdalena is a patient at Loma Linda University Health's Diabetes Treatment Center. She was depressed and immobile, having difficulty navigating the complex health system—but a community health worker was able to help. For more information please visit: https://news.llu.edu/academics/commun...

CHW Roles

Oregon CHW Association (ORCHWA) Dec 16, 2016

Community Health Workers

Over the last seven years, University of Pennsylvania researchers have refined a "Community Health Worker" program that is so successful that it is now being adopted by hospitals and health care systems across the country. At the 2018 Penn Medicine Innovation Accelerator Pitch Day, Penn Medicine Community Health Worker Program COO Jill Feldstein explains why the Penn system is so different. May 23, 2018

A Day in the Life of a Community Health Representative (CHR)

Partnership With Native Americans / Remember Native Americans

Being an advocate is key for those who serve as a Community Health Representative (CHR). The CHRs dedicate themselves to providing the best healthcare education to members in their own community. They are typically from the community in which they are working. They have vast knowledge on healthcare, but crucial to helping people within the community, they also have traditional and tribal knowledge.

The efforts of CHRs have helped lower the mortality rates in tribal communities. To learn more, visit PWNA's Southwest Indian Relief Council (SWIRC) program at: www.swirc.org. To help support CHR visits and provide critical supplies, personal care items, and other urgently needed services., donate at http://www.nativepartnership.org/site....

Learn more about PWNA's programs serving reservations in the Northern Plains and the Southwest at: www.nativepartnership.org.

Building the Community Based Workforce of the Future 9.21.21

Hosted by Partners in Health.

Across the country, community health workers have become trusted messengers on the front lines of strong primary care systems, accompanying patients, helping manage care, and coordinating with health centers and hospitals. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, this workforce has ensured people have the social and material support they need to stay safe, while also building trust in the vaccines.

PIH, alongside community health workers, advocates, and policy experts, will lead a dialogue speaking to the essential role of this community-based workforce. We'll examine how community health workers bolster overstretched public health systems and call for national investments in these roles.

Welcome

Building a Multicultural CHW Community of Practice in California

Bridging disparities Working for equity