Lessons Learned From a Community–Academic Initiative: The Development of a Core Competency–Based Training for Community–Academic Initiative Community Health Workers

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Am J Public Health
• Personal Author:
  Ruiz, Yumary ; Matos, Sergio ; Kapadia, Smiti ; Islam, Nadia ; Cusack, Arthur ; Kwong, Sylvia ; Trinh-Shevrin, Chau
• Description:
  Objectives
  
  Despite the importance of community health workers (CHWs) in strategies to reduce health disparities and the call to enhance their roles in research, little information exists on how to prepare CHWs involved in community–academic initiatives (CAIs). Therefore, the New York University Prevention Research Center piloted a CAI–CHW training program.
  
  Methods
  
  We applied a core competency framework to an existing CHW curriculum and bolstered the curriculum to include research-specific sessions. We employed diverse training methods, guided by adult learning principles and popular education philosophy. Evaluation instruments assessed changes related to confidence, intention to use learned skills, usefulness of sessions, and satisfaction with the training.
  
  Results
  
  Results demonstrated that a core competency–based training can successfully affect CHWs’ perceived confidence and intentions to apply learned content, and can provide a larger social justice context of their role and work.
  
  Conclusions
  
  This program demonstrates that a core competency–based framework coupled with CAI-research–specific skill sessions (1) provides skills that CAI–CHWs intend to use, (2) builds confidence, and (3) provides participants with a more contextualized view of client needs and CHW roles.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Adult Community Health Services Community Health Workers Curriculum Female Humans Interinstitutional Relations Male Middle Aged New York City Program Development Program Evaluation Universities Young Adult

  More +
• Source:
  Am J Public Health. 102(12):2372-2379
• Pubmed ID:
  22594730
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC3519306
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  U48 DP001904/DP/NCCDPHP CDC HHSUnited States/ ; 1U48DP001904-01/DP/NCCDPHP CDC HHSUnited States/ ; UL1 RR029893/RR/NCRR NIH HHSUnited States/ ; 1UL1RR029893/RR/NCRR NIH HHSUnited States/ ; R24001786/PHS HHSUnited States/ ; U54 MD000538/MD/NIMHD NIH HHSUnited States/ ; P60MD000538/MD/NIMHD NIH HHSUnited States/ ; P60 MD000538/MD/NIMHD NIH HHSUnited States/
• Volume:
  102
• Issue:
  12
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:62dc76f78c64411d2e3aff1f984accb0456f56c082b4d08af5bff36897ac8d79
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/33493/cdc_33493_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 235.00 KB ]