Being a Community Health Worker Means Advocating: Participation, Perceptions, and Challenges in Advocacy
Authors: Logan R
Year: 2019
State: NatDoc: National Document
Website link: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/336600126_Being_a_Community_Health_Worker_Means_Advocating
Publicly Available: Yes
Certification: CHW role scope of practice, Competencies
Evidence Generation: General other, Surveys and assessment tools to define and develop workforce, White papers
Sustainable Financing: Including community-based CHWs, Documentation of how CHWs can work within care teams, Results from pilots studies etc. that aren't published in formal literature, Surveys and assessment tools to define and develop workforce
Workforce Development: CDC expand CHW work into SDOH, General other (including mention of “employment practices”), Outreach education and TA to employers on CHW generally
Community health workers (CHWs) participate in advocacy as a crucial means to empower clients in overcoming health disparities and to improve the health and social well-being of their communities. Building on previous studies, this article proposes a new framework for conceptualising CHW advocacy, depending on the intended impact level of CHW advocacy. CHWs participate in three ‘levels’ of advocacy, the micro, the macro, and the professional. This article also details the challenges they face at each level. As steps are taken to institutionalise these workers throughout the United States and abroad, there is a danger that their participation in advocacy will diminish. As advocacy serves as a primary conduit through which to empower clients, enshrining this role in steps to integrate these workers is essential. Finally, this article provides justification for the impacts of CHWs in addressing the social determinants of health and in helping their communities strive towards health equity.
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