Results: 3069
COVID-19 crisis creates opportunities for community-centered population health: Community health workers at the center (2020)
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the fragility of the US healthcare system and the impacts of underinvestment in public health. Hobert Goldfield and colleagues outlined several state responses to the virus and the importance of CHWs in reducing its spread. The researchers called for governments to recruit greater CHW engagement inRead more…
COVID-19: Africa needs unprecedented attention to strengthen community health systems (2020)
The health workforce in general and CHWs in particular played an instrumental role in curbing the effects of the 2014-2016 Ebola virus outbreak. Lyudmila Neponmnyashchiy and her colleagues provide a brief comparison between the Ebola virus outbreak and the COVID-19 pandemic, underscoring the need for sub-Saharan African governments to investRead more…
Community health workers reveal COVID-19 disaster in Brazil (2020)
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Brazilian CHWs have received limited access to infection control training and personal protective equipment due to a lack of recognition as health professionals by the government. Gabriela Lotta and her colleagues describe the impacts of these decisions on CHW health and wellbeing.
Which intervention design factors influence performance of community health workers in low- and middle-income countries? A systematic review (2015)
National health systems increasingly rely on CHW programming to support population health. Maryse Kok surveyed 140 research studies to uncover CHW program designs that contribute to high CHW performance. Results indicated a broad array of contributing factors, including incentives, frequency of supervision, and high community involvement.
Community health workers in Hawai’i: A scoping review and framework analysis of existing evidence (2019)
David A Stupplebeen and his colleagues surveyed the literature to understand the scope of CHW’s role and responsibilities in Hawai’i. Responsibilities and roles generally reflected those outlined in the CDC’s ten essential public health services framework and community health worker core consensus project roles. The researchers called for a broaderRead more…
Community health workers in action: Community-clinical linkages for diabetes prevention and hypertension management at 3 community health centers (2020)
A 2014 Center for Disease Control and Prevention cooperative agreement enabled the Hawai’i Department of Health to partner with federally qualified health centers (FWHCs) to target local-level health systems interventions. One intervention used CHWs to target diabetes prevention and hypertension control. David Stupplebeen and his colleagues examined the facilitators andRead more…
Roles and functions of community health workers in primary care (2018)
CHWs in primary care include those with limited formal medical education who provide primary care services and patient support. Andrea Hartzler and her colleagues surveyed thirty research studies to understand the core functions and roles of CHWs in primary care. Functions of CHWs clustered across three types of roles: ClinicalRead more…
Protecting community health workers: PPE needs and recommendations for policy action (2020)
Demands for personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic strained global supply chains, often leaving low- and middle-income countries without a means to protect their health workers. CHWs are no exception. This article provides an overview of PPE required to protect CHWs during a pandemic and makes recommendations for improvingRead more…
Online versus in-person training of community health workers to enhance hepatitis B virus screening among Korean Americans: Evaluating cost & outcomes (2020)
Korean Americans experience chronic hepatitis B Virus (HBV) at alarming rates, attributable in part to a lack of awareness, screening, and vaccination against HBV. CHWs serve an important role in screening and vaccinating Korean Americans for HBV and HBV-related problems, but limited research has evaluated the cost of training theseRead more…
Costing analysis of a pilot community health worker program in rural nepal (2020)
A leader in community health care, Nepal seeks to expand their system to achieve universal health coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals. In 2017, the country piloted a program designed to align their programs with the World Health Organization 2018 guidelines for CHWs. Prajwol Nepal and colleagues evaluated the operatingRead more…
Effectiveness of community health workers in improving early initiation and exclusive breastfeeding rates in a low‐resource setting: A cluster‐randomized longitudinal study (2020)
Early breastfeeding initiation and exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life are linked to improved neonatal health and development. Dorothy Mituki-Mungiria and her colleagues explored how effective CHWs are in teaching mothers to breastfeed in the first hour after birth and continuing exclusive breastfeeding for 24 weeks postpartum.Read more…
Home visits by community health workers in rural South Africa have a limited, but important impact on maternal and child health in the first two years of life (2020)
Generalist CHWs were integrated into the South African health care system in 2011 to support limited availability of primary health care providers. Areas particularly needing support included rural communities struggling to address maternal and child health needs. Linnea Stansert Katzen and her colleagues followed 313 mothers in two rural SouthRead more…
Positionality of Community Health Workers on Health Intervention Research Teams: A Scoping Review (2020)
Even the most effective solutions will fail if they do not align with the experiences, interests, and beliefs of the communities they are designed to help. As people who are intimately involved within their communities, CHWs represent a group with the knowledge and insight to help researchers tailor projects toRead more…
Community Health Workers as Influential Health System Actors and not “Just Another Pair Of Hands” (2020)
CHWs across the world have mixed status, with some feeling appreciated as important contributors to their community and others feeling used and undervalued by more advanced health professionals. Sumit Kane and his colleagues surveyed CHWs in India to better understand their lived experiences. Many CHWs described initially feeling as ifRead more…
Community health worker interventions to promote psychosocial outcomes among people living with HIV– A systematic review (2018)
Some CHWs learn how to help people experiencing HIV and AIDS reframe their thinking about the disease to reduce depression, improve quality of life, and engage in treatment. Hae-Ra Han and her colleagues gathered available research about whether different types of training contribute to positive changes in HIV- and AIDS-relatedRead more…
Financing Alliance for Health Country Case Study: Ghana (2020)
Financing Alliance for Health has produced a series of country case studies providing robust information on community health system profiles, taking a financing lens. Each case study includes insights on community health system context, structure and lessons on financing. Ghana’s national CHW program began with field experiments in Navrongo andRead more…
Financing Alliance for Health Country Case Study: Kenya (2020)
Financing Alliance for Health has produced a series of country case studies providing robust information on community health system profiles, taking a financing lens. Each case study includes insights on community health system context, structure and lessons on financing. Kenya’s community health program was introduced in 2006 and has undergoneRead more…
Financing Alliance for Health Financing Curriculum (2020)
This presentation slide deck provides an overview of six key steps for financing a community health system: aligning political will to policy costing creating a “case” engaging funders building a gap analysis identifying new sources
Financing Alliance for Health Community Health Financing Compendium (2017)
Developed by Financing Alliance for Health, this compendium aims to support governments, i.e., ministries of health and finance, with information as they assess how to finance community health systems. More and more governments are formalizing their community health systems in Africa Financing is a critical enabler of these efforts; healthRead more…
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