Training Community Health Workers to Respond to Public Health Demands

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Education
• Community Health Nursing

Background:

• Community health workers (CHWs) are crucial for connecting individuals to resources and enhancing community health.
• There is a recognized need for structured research into community health nurse (CHN)-led training to support CHWs.
• CHWs play a vital role in disseminating health information and reducing health disparities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a series of CHN-led training programs for CHWs.
• Training topics included CHW roles, boundaries, motivational interviewing, diabetes, mental health, long COVID, STIs, and lead poisoning prevention.

Main Methods:

• A one-group pretest-posttest design was employed.
• Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from diverse CHW populations.
• Statistical and thematic analyses were performed on pre- and post-training data.

Main Results:

• The CHN-led training significantly increased CHW participants' knowledge and confidence across various public health topics.
• Participants reported increased comfort in educating community members.
• The study identified key learnings and plans for applying new knowledge in practice.

Conclusions:

• CHN-led educational interventions are an effective strategy for enhancing CHW capacity.
• Improved CHW knowledge, confidence, and comfort can strengthen community health initiatives.
• These findings support the integration of CHN-led training to empower CHWs.