With a long history of successfully and effectively addressing health disparities, Community Health Workers (CHWs) are capable of filling the gaps in services that many health care organizations experience in reaching underserved populations. However, the incredible potential to improve health outcomes that CHWs offer has yet to be fully realized in clinical settings. A significant obstacle to achieving full integration of CHWs on health care teams is confusion regarding the role of a CHW on part of clinical staff.
The session included in this guide is meant to address this obstacle in order to garner stronger support for CHWs on a clinical level. It is designed specifically for clinicians and tackles some of the most common misconceptions or concerns that they may have about including a CHW on a health care team. By the end of the session, clinicians will have a clearer picture of what the role of a CHW is on a care team and how they could directly benefit from working with a CHW.
This guide can be used by anyone who is an advocate for CHWs, including clinical and non-clinical staff at a hospital, clinic, health center, or someone from a nonprofit organization or public agency.
