unity in: Supporting the community health workforce

FACULTY MEMBER

Beth Ann Swan, PhD, RN, FAAN, associate dean and vice president for academic clinical partnerships and Charles F. and Peggy Evans Endowed Distinguished

Professor in Simulation and Innovation

PARTNERS/COMMUNITY

AID Atlanta, Atlanta Harm Reduction Coalition, Boat People SOS, Four Corners Primary Care Centers, Emory Hillandale Hospital, Fulton County Board of Health, Fulton County Jail, Georgia Department of Public Health, Latino Community Fund Georgia, and other community organizations

Community health workers often have different job titles: community health advisor, outreach worker, patient navigator, peer counselor, and promotore de salud. The School of Nursing will lead a training program to expand this workforce to serve vulnerable individuals in five Atlanta-area counties.

During COVID-19, community health workers played a vital role in vaccine outreach and building vaccine confidence. These workers, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services officials note, are trusted voices in their communities. They help their neighbors stay healthy by connecting them to well-child care, chronic disease care, mental health and substance use prevention and treatment, and other vital services.

Numbers show that Atlanta needs more of these workers. In a recent ranking of the nation’s top 20 cities, Atlanta ranked next to last in health care cost, quality, and access.

The School of Nursing aims to improve this through the Atlanta Region Community Health Workforce Advancement (ARCHWAy) Program. Through this program, the school will provide 12 weeks of training for new and existing community health workers serving vulnerable populations in Clayton, Coweta, DeKalb, Fulton, and Gwinnett counties. The program will also assist trainees with stipends, field and job placements, support services, referrals, financial literacy support, and mentoring.

Classes will be taught online and onsite at the Emory Nursing Learning Center in Decatur, utilizing simulated experiences and hands-on learning.

Over the next three years, faculty from the School of Nursing will lead 11 cohorts to train 450 community health workers.

ARCHWAy is funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration. Emory is the only nursing school in Georgia and one of three in the nation to receive funding for this type of program. — Pam

Auchmutey