What is a Community Health Worker?
What is a CHW in Maine?
In 2019, the Maine State Legislature adopted an official definition of Community Health Worker. In Maine, a CHW is a trained public health worker who is respected by the people they serve and applies their unique understanding of the experience, socio-economic needs, language and/or culture of their community to:
Bridge providers, support teams and clients to provide greater continuity of care and greater health outcomes
Lower barriers and improve access to care
Serve as essential advocates who support in the navigation and coordination of resources and services to equalize health access and disparities
CHWs are distinguished from other health professionals because they:
Have a unique understanding of the population and community they serve
A significant aspect of their role is conducting outreach
Strong skill set in providing services within direct community setting
Below are a list of links with more in-depth information on what defines a CHW:
What is a CHW? Check out this video.
Not sure if that’s you? Check this list to see if your job is a match!
This definition draws upon the work of CHWs and CHW Associations in Minnesota and Massachusetts. See CEPAC Reports for more information and details on the source documents: https://icer.org/assessment/community-health-workers-2013/
Examples of Community Health Workers Titles:
Patient rights advocate, health coach, recovery coach, community health advisor, cultural broker/navigator, family advocate, health educator, travaye sante kominote, liaison, promoter, promotor/a de salud, Travaye Sante Kominote outreach worker, peer counselor, patient navigator, health interpreter, and public health aide
What do CHWs do?
What do CHWs do?
Image Credit: Rosenthal EL, Menking P, St. John J, Fox D, Holderby-Fox LR, Redondo F, Hirsch G, Lee L, Brownstein JN, Allen C, Haywood C, Ortiz Miller J, Ibarra J, Cole M, Huxley L, Palmer C, Masoud S, Uriarte J, Rush CH. The Community Health Worker Core Consensus (C3) Project Reports and Website. Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso. 2014-2022. https://www.c3project.org/