renee
Hi All,
This just in from the New Mexico Community Health Workers Association (NMCHWA)... It's that time of year again! The NMCHWA annual conference is coming up September 12 and 13th. There be lots of training opportunities (okay, so Patty Anello and i will be there piloting our new curriculum on developing and leading diabetes support groups. Consider that a shameless plug). And the NMCHWA is looking for nominations for its annual awards.
Please submit nominations no later then September 1, 2007 for the following awards:
Lifetime Achievement-- Advocacy on behalf of CHW model
2 Promotora Lifetime Achievement (working as a promotoras 10+ years) -- i'm assuming you can be a CHW working under any job title here
Promotora of the year
Model Program of the year
Write a story that tells why you think the person or program you are nominating should receive the award.
Send Attention: Sylvia Garcia sygarcia@phs.org (505) 462-7865
Awards are presented at the annual CHW training conference Award Dinner. This year, the NMCHWA conference will be held September 12 & 13, 2007 at the Central United Methodist Church, 201 University Blvd N.E. Albuquerque, New Mexico. For more info on the conference email nmchwa@yahoo.com
--renee
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I've received a few requests for a version of this website in Spanish. Since that's way beyond my capacity, i'm suggesting another route -- Google's automatic translator. I suspect there will be a few bloopers, since the translation is automatically generated by a computer, but it should be good enough for everyone to participate.
But i need your help. I'd like to put a link to the Google translator on the front page of the site, with the following explanation:
To view this site in Spanich, click here (http://www.google.com/language_tools?hl=en) and type http://nmchwplace.squarespace.com into the box under "Translate a web page." Choose "English to Spanish" in the pull-down menu below the box. Then click "Translate."
Can anybody help me by translating those instructions?
Thanks!
-renee
One of the things i love about CHWs is that they're not easy to define -- which means they're real! After all, think of any single person who fits a "definition." Pretty stereotypical, ey? And mostly found in novels... But, alas, the people who pay for health services aren't so enamored of difficult-to-define workers. To that end, we've been working on a definition of CHWs for New Mexico. This definition serves several purposes. First, it gives us something with which to approach third-party payors, legislators, and anyone else with purse strings. Second, it provides a framework for developing core competencies and training program. Before a training program can be developed, there needs to be a somewhat clear idea of what CHWs are expected to do. Third, it gives CHWs themselves a framework and identity. That's helpful, especially when your friends start asking "So what is it you do, anyway???"
At any rate, here's the current definition of CHWs that has been adopted by the New Mexico CHW Advisory Council and has been used as the foundation for developing recommendations and guidelines for certifying and standardizing training of CHWs in New Mexico.
Note: CHW is used here as an umbrella term and includes those who work under an array of job titles, including promotor(a), outreach worker, community health advocate, peer health educator, and others. Community Health Representatives (CHRs), who are trained and work under the auspices of Tribal CHR programs, are also included in the umbrella term.
- The CHW is an integral member of the health-care team who brings a distinct and necessary set of skills to that team.
- CHWs are community members who face the same barriers as do others in the community.
- CHWs help other community members improve health status by:
- acting as a liaison between community members and health and social services systems;
- providing culturally-responsive education about health issues;
- extending the provision of health-care services;
- helping community members prevent and manage chronic diseases;
- creating opportunities for community members to come together to address health issues; and
- modeling healthful behaviors.
- Compare this to another definition, presented in the HRSA CHW National Workforce study (published March 2007
- Community health workers are lay members of communities who work eitherfor pay or as volunteers in association with the local health care system in both urban and rural environments and usually share ethnicity, language, socioeconomic status and life experiences with the community members they serve. They have been identified by many titles such as community health advisors, lay health advocates, “promotores(as),”1 outreach educators, community health representatives, peer health promoters, and peer health educators. CHWs offer interpretation and translation services, provide culturally appropriate health education and information, assist people in receiving the care they need, give informal counseling and guidance on health behaviors, advocate for individual and community health needs, and provide some direct services such as first aid and blood pressure screening.
- There are a few things that give me heartburn about this definition. First, the use of the word "lay" always bugs me -- i understand that they're trying to differentiate between licensed providers and CHWs, but there's something about the "lay" that seems to imply that they're somehow lesser, or not on the same plane (or maybe that's my Catholic upbringing talking!). Second, what about social services systems? Most of the CHWs i know need to know a lot about things like food stamps, emergency shelters, and other community resources. Third, the list of "what do you do" seems somewhat limiting and at times too vague ("assist people in receiving the care they need") and at times too specific ("provide some direct services such as first aid and blood pressure screening.").
- i'll admit that i'm biased, since i developed the first definition myself and was pleased when the Council adopted it with only a few tweaks. But i'm still disturbed by the HRSA findings. The profile of the CHWs in the study also disturbed me. Nearly one-third of employers they surveyed required CHWs to have bachelor's degrees; 39% of the CHWs surveyed were Anglo; and starting wages were about $13/hour. That's not what we found in New Mexico, where a high school diploma was required by most employers, less than 10% of the CHWs surveyed were Anglo, and average wages, including experienced CHWs in supervisory positions, were $7.10.
- Why is that important? It's important because there's a move afoot to certify CHWs on a national level. And if certification and training requirements reflect the definition and profile of CHWs in the HRSA study, New Mexico's CHWs are going to have trouble fitting that profile. That makes it all the more important that New Mexico develop a CHW definition, certification process, and training guidelines that fit the needs of CHWs in the state.
- Thoughts?
- --renee
Things are moving forward in the certification world! Thanks to all who "attended" my presentation on CHW certification and training at the NMCHWA quarterly training. I've put my presentation up in the "download reports" section of this website, so those of you who weren't there (or were in Las Cruces and got cut off halfway through) can access it and review it. Thanks, too, to NMCHWA, UNM, and all the host sites for the use of teleconference technology. I know it wasn't perfect, but it was really nice not to have to drive 5 or 6 hours to a meeting!
After the presentation, there were some excellent questions. I responded as well as I could to those questions, but i'd like to have CHWs and employers weigh in.
- Are the requirements stringent enough?
- How will certification affect CHWs who live and work in Mexico, but who work with programs in New Mexico?
- How long will it take?
- How can CHWs help to move the process forward?
I'm working on a timeline about CHWs in New Mexico, and i'm looking for input. Here are some of the events i have listed. Can anyone help with dates, additional events, or other things that should be included? I'm looking for any important steps -- it could be the date your program was started, development of a curriculum, a new something for CHWs.
- 196? -- the first CHR program is established in New Mexico
- 198? -- La Clinica de Familia starts its CHW program
- 19?? -- New Mexico Community Health Workers Association is formed
- 198? -- Reaching Out Curriculum is developed
- 200? -- Southern New Mexico Promotora Committee is formed
- January 2003 -- New Mexico Senate Joint Memorial 076 passes and taskforce forms
- October 2003 -- SJM 076 study presented to legislators
- December 2006 -- New Mexico Advisory Council is formed
- July 2007 -- Northern New Mexico Promotora Committee is formed
Thanks for your help with this!
--renee