Communities across the United States face numerous challenges in terms of health status and access to care. Community health workers (CHWs) provide major assistance in delivery of health resources through a community centered approach. This policy document from the American Public Health Association (APHA) updates the organization’s 2001 policy … [Read more...] about Support for Community Health Workers to Increase Health Access and to Reduce Health Inequities
North America (U.S. and Canada)
Mobilizing Community Health Workers to Address Mental Health Disparities for Underserved Populations: A Systematic Review
This systematic review assesses the evidence on integrating community health workers (CHWs) into the delivery of mental health services in the United States and low- and middle- income countries. It includes 43 articles of which 39 are trials. The article highlights CHW background characteristics, their role in the mental health service provision, and the types of interventions … [Read more...] about Mobilizing Community Health Workers to Address Mental Health Disparities for Underserved Populations: A Systematic Review
Enabling Community Health Worker Recognition and Referral of Surgical Diseases: Pilot Study Results of a Pictorial Guide
Access to surgical care represents a pressing challenge in LMICs, particularly for vulnerable populations. Community health workers (CHWs) and lay people play diverse roles in primary health care in these settings. However, they remain disconnected from surgical care in most environments. This study looked to assess the degree to which CHW understanding of surgical conditions … [Read more...] about Enabling Community Health Worker Recognition and Referral of Surgical Diseases: Pilot Study Results of a Pictorial Guide
Adapting an Evidence-based Cardiovascular Disease Risk Reduction Intervention to Rural Communities.
The purpose of this study was to apply the RE-AIM framework to evaluate data obtained from focus group discussions to generate information on the availability of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk interventions through the COACH program in Nebraska. The COACH approach involves interventions provided by nurses and community health workers … [Read more...] about Adapting an Evidence-based Cardiovascular Disease Risk Reduction Intervention to Rural Communities.
A Cancer Education-Plus-Navigation Intervention Implemented Within a Federally Qualified Health Center and Community-Based Settings.
While cancer screening tests are available, Latinos are screened at a lower rate than non-Hispanic whites. This study looked at the effectiveness of an evidence-based community health worker (CHW) intervention which was designed to increase screening rates, knowledge about screening guidelines and awareness about benefits of early detection. The project involved community and … [Read more...] about A Cancer Education-Plus-Navigation Intervention Implemented Within a Federally Qualified Health Center and Community-Based Settings.