Community Equity Alliance: An Initiative Aimed To Address Healthcare Barriers In Underserved Communities

By Moon Harper

Dec 01, 2023 04:19 AM EST

Community health workers are a valuable resource undervalued in the ongoing U.S. effort to reduce healthcare inequalities. It is critical to comprehend how these professionals can benefit our communities as government agencies, nonprofits, and healthcare companies strive to increase access to care.

(Photo : Unsplash/Ashkan Forouzani)

Who Are The Community Health Workers?

Community Health Workers are frontline public health workers deeply connected to their communities. They undergo specialized training to enhance connections between marginalized communities and the healthcare system. In the U.S., these workers offer crucial services such as first aid, distributing educational materials, conducting home visits, and assisting patients during medical visits. They act as cultural mediators, addressing language barriers and other obstacles to quality care. Community health workers operate in diverse settings, including hospitals, clinics, public health departments, campuses, and local community organizations. Community Health Workers don't require traditional degrees, making these roles accessible to individuals with diverse educational backgrounds.

The Landscape And Its Dilemma

According to a 2021 National Association of Community Health Workers survey, 11.1% of community health workers identified as multiracial or other, 37.7% as Hispanic, and 31.7% as African American/Black. These groups frequently experience health issues due to challenges accessing care, such as unmet health-related social needs like transportation, food, or housing, and the explicit and implicit biases of providers of different backgrounds. To address these problems, community health workers play a crucial role in guiding patients by assisting them in navigating the healthcare system, fostering trust, and putting them in touch with pertinent social services. Healthcare providers hope to improve care by utilizing these people's strengths and the resources already present in their communities-their people. As healthcare organizations and medical schools expand community health worker programs, more people and families around the country will directly gain from their beneficial effects.

Evidence-Based Training

Meharry Medical College offers a program covering motivational interviewing, chronic disease screening, and CPR. Community health workers can earn certificates through this training, gaining valuable knowledge and skills. With evidence-based training, these workers can offer essential resources and services to historically underserved communities that often share demographic characteristics with the workforce.

Andrea Barstow, a community health worker, completed training at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee. The program, focused on mental and cardiovascular health disparities, equips workers like Barstow with skills such as motivational interviewing and CPR. Barstow chose this path to aid her brother through mental health challenges, and her journey highlights how community health workers can make a significant impact with their acquired knowledge in underserved communities.

Meharry Medical College is a member of CVS Health's Community Equity Alliance, which brings academic and healthcare institutions together to help expand the community health worker workforce and address health inequities in heart and mental health.

CVS Health Community Equity Alliance is an initiative introduced by CVS Health to address healthcare barriers in underserved communities nationwide. This initiative focuses on expanding the community health worker workforce, improving connections between healthcare institutions and communities, and tackling heart and mental health outcomes disparities. Initial partners in this effort include Meharry Medical College, Sinai Chicago, and Wayne State University, each receiving funding for locally tailored projects. CVS Health is committed to promoting health equity. Through collaborative efforts and evidence-based interventions, the Alliance aims to create innovative solutions to enhance healthcare accessibility and reduce health disparities. Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, CVS Health's Vice President and Chief Health Equity Officer, emphasized the Alliance's goal of elevating the voices and experiences of local communities to ensure equitable care.