Collaboration in Development of CHW Research, Financing and Employment Policy

Community Health Workers in Miami are playing an important role at both the grassroots and policy level. Though Community Health Workers are not new to South Florida, it has only been in the last two years that standardized training has been implemented. Currently over 120 CHWs have gone through the standardized Level I training and 56 of those trained are currently employed as CHWs. While CHWs in Miami-Dade County work for a variety of different agencies, they have also been able to standardize data collection and documentation with the help and collaboration of the Jackson Foundation, CVM, and The Children's Trust (which is currently the only funder actually supporting CHW positions in Miami-Dade County). CHWs in Miami are identifying policy and systemic issues that have become major obstacles in linking and getting people access to care. This presentation will focus on how organizations and individuals can establish a CHW Network in their community and the importance of documentation and sharing that information with local and national policy makers. The presentation will also give participants an update on the development and organization of the American Association of Community Health Workers as well as a briefing on findings from the Community Voices national CHW conference in Washington D.C. called A Wise Investment: Financing and Integrating Community Health Workers in the Health Care System March 2007.