Advancing the voice of Community Health Workers to inform their identity, training and certification

In recent years, the community health worker (CHW) field has grown significantly in the US, with increasing numbers, roles, and visibility. State health department regulators, health program administrators, and opther advocates have observed this growth with uncertainty about the definition of a CHW, how CHW roles differ from those of other health professionals, CHW training needs, and the potential impact of the growing certification regulations. Despite the proliferation of regulatory policies, few studies have examined how regulation can support CHWs in the field. Our objective was to define CHW, identify training needs, and examine possibilities for credentialing from the perspective of CHWs in NYC. Community-based participatory research (CBPR) was used to gather input from CHWs in the design and conduct of the study. The academic–community–state partnership designed focus group topic guides, and conducted focus groups with CHWs in NYC. The focus group responses were analyzed using HyperResearch. Under CHW leadership, we developed a consensus definition of CHW and its fundamental qualities,identified unmet training needs in core competencies and outlined a credentialing process that advances the work of CHWs. CHWs will present how CBPR enabled CHWs to have a direct voice in defining their description, roles, training, and certification preferences. Also importantly, supporting a CHW voice in this discussion through CBPR emphasized the unique CHW access to authentic information based on the trust they establish in their communities and their role as “Natural researchers.” This added value informed policy recommendations to the state, university, and CHWs through a collaborative process.