Two local health departments will use grants from the Connecticut Health Foundation to employ community health workers (CHWs) who can respond to the needs of their communities. Ledge Light Health District in New London and the Norwalk Health Department will each receive $100,000 to demonstrate the value of CHWs in a public health setting who can serve as generalists, with the flexibility to support community members in many ways.
Community health workers build trust with their communities, improve communication to ensure needs are being met, and link community members to programs that aim to improve health outcomes. CHWs at both health departments will reflect the communities they serve — they will be bilingual and have lived experience — and address the challenges that impact those who experience the most disparities. Individuals in these positions will also help community members navigate barriers to their health by providing culturally and linguistically appropriate services.
Often, community health worker initiatives and grant funding are focused on addressing specific health conditions. However, CHWs and health department officials have said their services are most effective when they can work to address a person’s needs in a broader, more holistic way. CHWs supported through this initiative will serve as generalists, able to support the broad needs of their communities.
The health departments will collect data on the impact of CHWs on health outcomes and the return on investment for CHWs in this capacity, adding to the large body of research on the value of CHWs with specific findings related to CHWs serving as generalists within health departments. The health departments will share their findings with other local health departments across the state as part of efforts to achieve sustainable funding for community health workers and expanded services by these workers.
“Through this initiative, we hope to learn more about how to best use CHWs at our organization and our community public health system to optimize their impact in other service areas, sustain their work at Norwalk Health Department, and grow the workforce overall,” said Theresa Argondezzi, assistant director of health for the city of Norwalk.
“We are excited for this opportunity to not only broaden the reach of our CHW program but to collaborate with others to deepen our capacity to document the effectiveness of this work in improving community health and the return on investment for funders, including Medicaid,” said Jennifer Muggeo, director of health at Ledge Light Health District, which serves East Lyme, Groton, Ledyard, Lyme, New London, North Stonington, Old Lyme, Stonington, and Waterford.
“We know community health workers are extremely valuable when it comes to improving health outcomes. Our hope is these programs will also show the value of these roles within local health departments when given the latitude to be responsive to the needs of community members,” said Tiffany Donelson, president and CEO of the Connecticut Health Foundation. “Expanding community health worker services in public settings can help the state make even more progress toward eliminating health disparities.”
Other Grants: