Community Health Worker CT

Community Health Worker CT

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  • Best Practices
  • The Business Case of CHWs
  • Career Ladder
  • Successful Integrations of CHWs
  • CT Work
  • National Work

Best Practices

Making the system work for everyone

Integrating Community Health Workers Into a Reformed Health Care System
Addressing Chronic Disease through Community Health Workers: A Policy and Systems-Level Approach
Taking Innovation to Scale: Community Health Workers, Promoters, and the Triple Aim
Integrating Community Health Workers into Health Care Teams to Improve Equity and Quality of Care
Community Health Worker Integration Into the Health Care Team Accomplishes the Triple Aim in a Patient-Centered Medical Home: A Bronx Tale
Peer Support in the PCMH and Primary Care: Conference Report
Best Practice Guidelines for Implementing and Evaluating Community Health Worker Programs in Health Care Settings
Community Health Workers: A Review of Program Evolution, Evidence on Effectiveness and Value, and Status of Workforce Development in New England
Achieving the Triple Aim: Success with Community Health Workers
CHWs & the Triple Aim
Community Health Workers: Supporting Diabetes Prevention in Michigan

The Business Case for CHWs

Community health workers and Medicaid managed care in New Mexico
Sustainable Financing Models for Community Health Worker Services in Connecticut: Translating Science into Practice
Return on Investment From Employment of Community Health Workers
THE CARE SPAN: Medicaid Savings Resulted When Community Health Workers Matched Those With Needs To Home And Community Care.
Impact of Community Health Workers on Use of Healthcare Services in the United States A Systematic Review.”
The Seattle-King County Healthy Homes Project: A Randomized, Controlled Trial of a Community Health Worker Intervention to Decrease Exposure to Indoor Asthma Triggers.
Georgia firm’s blueprint for taming health costs
ROI Tool Kit: A Guide for Conducting a Return on Investment Analysis for a Community Health Worker Program.
Pathways Community Care Coordination in Low Birth Weight Prevention.

Career Ladder

Career advancement for Community Health Workers (CHW) is important to consider when expanding an organization’s workforce to include CHWs.  As the CHW workforce grows and becomes more accepted within Connecticut’s State Innovation Model Community and Clinical Integration Program (CCIP) within the Advanced Networks and the Patient Centered Medical Home Plus program, job security and advancement must be incorporated into the organization’s plans.

As an employer begins to incorporate CHWs into its practice, it is important to plan ahead for how CHWs can advance their careers and move up in the organization as they master their position and seek to expand the horizon of their work. As CHWs acclimate to their positions and become valuable members of their teams, their contributions to the organization should be recognized. Advancement and recognition can be accomplished by providing opportunities for CHWs to grow through specialization, continuing education, or expansion of duties, which duties may include supervisory or training roles for other CHWs. Such career ladders are widely regarded as effective means of fostering the growth of CHWs within the agency or organization.

In their CHW E-Learning Series, the Center for Disease Control describes three specific needs to be met in order to improve career development for the CHW workforce:

  • CHWs need a career ladder with advancement options.
  • CHWs need pathways to related careers and special supports in pursuing these pathways.
  • CHW employment should be viewed as a possible entry to the workforce for welfare recipients and for people who were formerly incarcerated.[1]

It is recommended that CHW employers keep these needs front and center as they build their teams.

The Centers for Disease Control describes how employers can create career ladders for CHWs: “As with many entry-level jobs, employers may offer salary increases and upgraded job titles for increasing levels of independent responsibility, including graduated levels of supervisory responsibility.”[2]  As CHWs gain experience and participate in continuing educational opportunities, they often serve as mentors to new CHWs and other staff, and may eventually serve as trainers. This is often a result of the central quality of the CHW’s role: not only to provide for and serve their clients, but also to enhance the capabilities of their peers. Per the CDC:

“Experienced CHWs can make excellent trainers, and this responsibility can offer job enrichment as well as opportunities for higher pay. Another option is to create specialist CHW positions, such as breast-feeding counselor within a WIC program, or medical interpreter.  Certification for specialized duties can carry an enhanced job title and supplemental pay.  Finally, larger employer organizations may wish to create senior CHW positions as troubleshooters or consultants, who assist other CHWs or teams with problem solving or setting up special projects.” [3]

Example of possible levels for a CHW Career Ladder:

  • CHW 1: Health Education, Basic Health Assessment, Visual screening for red flags.
    • A specialty topic could dictate a particular ladder; there could be separate ladders for, e.g.,  Women’s Health, Diabetes, Asthma, Breastfeeding, Children’s Health, Behavioral Health, Dental, HIV, etc.
  • CHW 2: Eligibility Screening, Health Insurance Enrollment, Prevention Screening, Lifestyle Change Counseling (e.g., exercise classes, diet advice, etc.)
  • CHW 3:  Patient Engagement with PCP for Preventive/Routine Care, Medical Interpreting, Training and Job Shadowing Mentor for new CHWs
  • CHW Lead:  Supervising CHWs, Leading Team Meetings, Participating in Grand Rounds

Certification can be required of all CHW levels of the career ladder, or may begin with CHW II or III. The Lead CHW should be certified.

It should be recognized that a CHW may choose to have community health work as a lifelong career, or they may choose a CHW position as a “[stepping stone] to other health-related occupations”;[4]   such CHWs are referred to as “up and out” CHWs. Employers may provide such up and out CHWs with exposure and access to “established health career tracks in areas such as patient care, clinical technician, or medical administration.” [5]

[1] http://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/chw_elearning/s3_p10.html

[2] http://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/chw_elearning/s3_p11.html

[3] ibid.

[4] http://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/chw_elearning/s3_p10.html

[5] Scott, Geri and Wilson, Randall.  “Community Health Worker Advancement: A Research Summary”, Jobs for the Future April 2006, Report funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.    http://www.jff.org/publications/community-health-worker-advancement-research-summary works.org/Downloads/chwressumm.pdf

Successful Integration of CHWs

Community Health Worker (CHW) Toolkit – A Guide For Employers
CHW Recruitment and Hiring
CHW Orientation to the Practice
CHW Training Guide and Resource
CHW Readiness Tool
Readiness to Integrate CHWs Into Your Practice
CHW Training Tool Checklist
Beyond the Walls: Effectively Utilizing Community Health Workers and Clinical Home Visitors as Part of the Team

CT Work

SWAHEC Business Case for Community Health Workers

CHF Understanding Community Health Workers

CHWs in CT

SWAHEC Survey Report

Community  Health Workers in  Connecticut

National Work

How Community Health Workers Can Reinvent Health Care Delivery in the US

Support for Community Health Workers to Increase Health Access and to Reduce Health Inequities

Clinical to Community Connections: Community Health Workers

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© Copyright 2016 CT AHEC. All Rights Reserved.

The project described was supported by Grant Number 1G1CMS331630-02-00 from the Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The contents of this publication are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or any of its agencies. The research presented here was conducted by the awardee. Findings might or might not be consistent with or confirmed by the findings of the independent federal evaluation contractor.