Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #112937

Janis A. Prince, PhD, MMFT, Chiles Center for Healthy Mothers and Babies, University of South Florida, 13201 Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, Tampa, FL 33612-3805, 813 974-8610, jprince@hsc.usf.edu and Darlene Shearer, DrPH, The Lawton and Rhea Chiles Center for Healthy Mothers and Babies, University of South Florida, 3111 East Fletcher Avenue, Tampa, FL 33613-4660.

This presentation will focus on findings from outcome data collected from Community Health Workers (CHWs) trained in the Maternal and Child Services Applied Technology Diploma (ATD) Training Program. The Maternal and Child Services Program is a 21 credit-hour associate degree level program for CHWs specializing in support services to childbearing families and their young children. Twenty-eight CHWs have graduated from the pilot test of the Workforce Development Program in Florida at Hillsborough Community College, and St. Petersburg College, and the program is currently being replicated at Central Florida Community College. Data were collected from CHWs at three points during the 18-month training program, with a fourth round of data collection planned during the summer of 2005, six months post graduation. The evaluation surveys were designed to measure professional development in terms of attitudes and beliefs, job skills and practice, employment status, self-efficacy, job satisfaction and career goals. A CHW who has attended the Maternal and Child Services Program will describe her own professional development as a result of participating in the training program.

Learning Objectives:

• i) Describe the professional development of CHWs undergoing training. ii) List three to five elements of professional development iii) Discuss the challenges and opportunities in designing evaluations of CHW training programs.

Keywords: Community Health Advisor, Evaluation

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.