Community Health Worker

WHAT IS A COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKER?     

     Community Health Workers (CHW) are frontline public health workers who are trusted members of the community they serve. This trusting relationship enables them to serve as a liaison/link/intermediary between their community and health and/or social services to facilitate access to services and improve the quality and cultural responsiveness of service delivery.

     The unique strength of Community Health Workers is their ability to develop rapport with people and other community members due to shared culture, community residence, chronic condition, disability, language, and life experiences. They are also able to enhance the cultural and linguistic appropriateness of care and help to counteract factors such as social exclusion, poverty, and marginalization.

 Specific Information on becoming a Certified Community Health Worker is available on the RI Certification Board website:  www.ricertboard.org/certifications

 WHERE IS CHW TRAINING AVAILABLE?

 CHW training information can be found on the following websites:

 RI College:  http://www.ric.edu/healthyjobsri/Pages/trainingservices.aspx

 The RI Dept. of Health:  http://www.health.ri.gov/communities/about/workers/