92: Investing in Community Health Workers Is Vital to Population Health

Public Health Review

Community health workers (CHWs) are frontline, public health professionals who share life experience, compassion, and cultural and value alignment with the communities they serve. They work in a range of settings under different titles, but what makes them unique is their ability to build deep trust with the people they serve based on their lived experience.

Despite robust evidence demonstrating the value of CHWs, sustainability of CHW positions and funding remains a perpetual challenge. In this episode, two industry experts with direct state public health experience discuss why it is so critical to invest in the CHW workforce as part of a health equity strategy, and share resources available to help recruit, retain, and sustain the workforce.

Guests:

· Joneigh Khaldun, MD, MPH, FACEP: Chief Health Equity Officer, CVS Health, alum–MI

· Sherri Ohly: Co-Director, Development, Envision

Resources:

· ASTHO: CHW resources

· Center for Community Health Alignment: CHW Model Best Practice Toolkits

· Community-Based Workforce Alliance: Advancing CHW Engagement in COVID-19 Response Strategies

· CVS Health:

o ASTHO-CVS Health: High-Impact Community Investments by Health Plans

o Health Equity

· Envision:

o Community Health Worker (CHW) Training and Technical Assistance Center

o Online community

o Newsletter

o Trainings

o CHW Sustainability Summit Journal (English or Spanish)

· National Association of Community Health Workers:

o Community Health Worker Pay Equity

o Sustainable Financing of Community Health Workers Employment

· Northern Arizona University, Center for Health Equity Research: Community Health Representative Integration Tools for Vaccine Deployment and Emergency Response

· Public Health Review Morning Edition