Change agents in the oncology workforce: Let’s be clear about community health workers and patient navigators
Despite efforts of professional organizations and government agencies to solidify the professional identities of community health workers and patient navigators in the oncology workforce, the scientific literature perpetuates wide variation in the nomenclature used to define these natural change agents, who have proven efficacy in improving access to quality cancer care for historically marginalized populations. […]
Health Start Program Evaluation Impact Report
The purpose of this evaluation is to assess the impact of the Health Start Program, Arizona’s longstanding community health worker (CHW) intervention, on maternal and child health (MCH) outcomes. Key findings included: Participation in the Health Start Program during 2006 to 2016 is associated with statistically significant decreases in adverse birth outcomes and increases in […]
Community Health Workers’ Critical Role in Trust Building Between the Medical System and Communities of Color
This article interrogates elements of routine medical practice in New York City to argue for reforms of hospital culture through relational trust-building capabilities of community health workers. The takeaways include the following: Trust is not the default for patients of color. Asking many patients of color to “unlearn” their mistrust of hospitals should be reversed […]
Mechanisms for Community Health Worker Action on Patient-, Institutional-, and Community-Level Barriers to Primary Care in a Safety-Net Setting
Medically and socially complex patients disproportionately face barriers to primary care, contributing to health inequities and higher health care costs. This study elicited perspectives on how community health workers (CHWs) act upon barriers to primary care in 5 patient and 3 CHW focus groups. Participants described how CHWs acted on patient-level barriers through social support, […]
CHWs Improving Health Outcomes in Rural South Carolina
The following case studies show how CHWs are changing lives and improving health outcomes throughout South Carolina.
Pathways to Establishing State CHW Certification
Community Health Worker (CHW) Certification is an endorsement from leaders in the profession that an individual meets predefined standards. It operates at a state level and can be attained by CHWs to demonstrate mastery of standards. The following resource provides general guidance for advocates seeking to establish CHW certification in a state that does not […]
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services State Plan Amendment Review Process
Graphic of state plan amendment review process at the federal level.
Capturing Value in Social Health: Lessons in Developing the Business Case for Social Health Integration in Primary Care
The integration of social health interventions, including screening patients for unmet social needs and linking them with services and other supports, requires long-term funding. The goal of this analysis is to develop a practical approach for business case analysis to support the spread and sustainability of social health interventions in varied institutional and market settings. […]
Team-Based Care and Improved Blood Pressure Control: A Community Guide Systematic Review
The goal of this Community Guide systematic review was to examine the effectiveness of team-based care in improving blood pressure (BP) outcomes. Results suggest that team-based care is effective in improving BP outcomes. From the update, the proportion of patients with controlled BP improved (median increase ¼ 12 percentage points); systolic BP decreased (median reduction […]
Team-Based Care to Improve Blood Pressure Control: Recommendation of the Community Preventive Services Task Force
The Community Preventive Services Task Force recommends team-based care to improve blood pressure control on the basis of strong evidence of effectiveness in improving the proportion of patients with controlled blood pressure (BP) and reducing systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP). Evidence was considered strong based on findings from 80 studies of team-based care […]