Job satisfaction, mental health, and workplace well-being of community health workers: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Community health workers (CHWs) are increasingly recognized as essential to the public health workforce, yet little is known about CHWs’ workplace well-being. We examined CHWs’ job satisfaction, mental health, and workplace experiences. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional online survey of CHWs across the state of New Jersey. Job satisfaction was measured using an adapted version of the Multi-Dimensional Motivation Scale for Community Health Workers with scores ranging from − 2 to 2 on dimensions of quality of supervision, feeling valued & capacitated, peer respect & support, and compensation & workload. Mental health was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4). We also examined positive and negative work experiences, including accomplishments, skill learning, career growth, stress, bullying, and discrimination using items on a 5-point Likert Scale. A descriptive analysis was conducted. RESULTS: 52 CHWs completed the survey (69% female; 46% Hispanic, 27% non-Hispanic Black, 21% non-Hispanic White). Median (interquartile range) scores indicated high degree of satisfaction for quality of supervision [1.0 (0.9 to 1.9)], feeling valued [1.3 (0.9 to 1.7)], and peer support [1.4 (1 to 2)], but lower satisfaction for compensation and workload [0.4 (-0.4 to 1.2)]. Nearly all participants agreed or strongly agreed that their job gave them a chance to learn new skills (90%), however only 61% believed their job provided opportunities for advancement. Among participants, 23% reported typically feeling stressed out during the workday, 21% felt emotionally drained from their work, and 10% indicated that their job negatively impacted their mental health. PHQ-4 scores indicated that 12% had a positive depression screen and 16% had a positive anxiety screen. 15% reported ever having been subjected to workplace bullying and 21% had experienced workplace discrimination. CONCLUSIONS: CHWs’ overall job satisfaction was high. However, dissatisfaction with compensation, lack of opportunities for advancement and job-related stress were prominent challenges. Research is needed to identify and evaluate policies to improve CHW job conditions and promote workplace well-being.