Community Health Workers

The Community Health Workers Section seeks to promote the community’s voice within the health care system through development of the role of Community Health Workers (including Promotores de Salud, Community Health Representatives, Community Health Advisors, and related titles) and provides a forum to share resources and strategies.

The CHW Section has adopted the following definition of a community health worker: A community health worker is a frontline public health worker who is a trusted member of and/or has an unusually close understanding of the community served. This trusting relationship enables the worker to serve as a liaison/link/intermediary between health/social services and the community to facilitate access to services and improve the quality and cultural competence of service delivery.

A community health worker also builds individual and community capacity by increasing health knowledge and self-sufficiency through a range of activities such as outreach, community education, informal counseling, social support and advocacy.