Center for Healthcare Value and Equity, LA State University Health Sciences Center - New Orleans, 533 Bolivar Street, Room 511, New Orleans, LA, 70112, USA.
Center for Healthcare Value and Equity, LA State University Health Sciences Center - New Orleans, 533 Bolivar Street, Room 507, New Orleans, LA, 70112, USA.
J Community Health. 2021 Feb;46(1):64-74. doi: 10.1007/s10900-020-00843-7.
Community health workers (CHWs) are effective in improving public health, and many states are developing policy to support the workforce. In 2019, the Louisiana legislature created the CHW Workforce Study Committee (Committee) of at least half CHWs to study the workforce and provide the state with policy recommendations. The Committee followed national best practices in CHW engagement. A CHW and an academic team identified CHWs and employers statewide, administered a survey in partnership with a CHW professional association, and conducted in-depth interviews with CHWs and employers. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize survey data and applied thematic analysis was used to interpret interview transcripts. Sixty-five CHWs and 37 employers participated in the survey. Twenty-one CHWs and 15 employers completed interviews. Survey data indicated that Louisiana CHW roles and activities are consistent with national research. Interviews revealed a lack of knowledge about CHWs among key stakeholders, CHW workforce challenges including lack of community and professional resources, and differing ideas about the value of common workforce development practices such as standardized training and credentialing. Findings suggest a need for widespread education about CHWs and support for CHW participation in professional associations to address common workforce challenges. CHW co-leadership and partnering with a CHW professional association enabled successful study execution and full participation of CHWs in the formation of Committee recommendations. A subset of Committee members, made up of at least half CHWs, continues to meet to expand and support the workforce.
社区卫生工作者（CHW）在改善公共卫生方面非常有效，许多州正在制定政策以支持这一工作队伍。2019 年，路易斯安那州立法机构成立了至少由一半 CHW 组成的 CHW 劳动力研究委员会（委员会），以研究劳动力状况并向该州提供政策建议。委员会遵循 CHW 参与方面的国家最佳实践。一名 CHW 和一个学术团队在全州范围内确定 CHW 和雇主，与 CHW 专业协会合作开展调查，并对 CHW 和雇主进行深入访谈。描述性统计用于总结调查数据，应用主题分析解释访谈记录。共有 65 名 CHW 和 37 名雇主参与了调查。21 名 CHW 和 15 名雇主完成了访谈。调查数据表明，路易斯安那州的 CHW 角色和活动与国家研究一致。访谈揭示了关键利益相关者对 CHW 的了解不足，CHW 劳动力面临的挑战包括缺乏社区和专业资源，以及对共同劳动力发展实践（如标准化培训和认证）的价值存在不同看法。调查结果表明，需要对 CHW 进行广泛的教育，并支持 CHW 参与专业协会，以解决共同的劳动力挑战。CHW 联合领导和与 CHW 专业协会合作，使研究的成功执行和 CHW 对委员会建议形成的全面参与成为可能。委员会的一个成员小组，至少由一半的 CHW 组成，继续开会以扩大和支持劳动力。
