Community Health Worker Education

Summit Academy OIC in North Minneapolis offers training to become a Community Health Worker.

Assignment:  Go to Summit Academy to find out who takes the Community Health Worker training and how people playing this role make a difference in the community.  SA staff have offered to connect us with current students and graduates of the program.

Background info:   As our health care system changes, new roles are created that lack definition and standards.  Here’s a blurb from a website called Explore Health Careers dot org that lays out some of the problem:

Throughout the United States, the community health worker field is burgeoning, both in interest and demand, yet the practice lacks definition, standards and openly available training opportunities. The field is also rapidly expanding into new areas of health and community wellness as community health workers continue to improve chronic disease management programs, health insurance enrollment, immunization drives, HIV/AIDS treatment, access to mental health services and maternal-child health interventions.

Here’s some info from Summit Academy

Community health workers (CHWs) play a significant role in breaking down barriers and access to healthcare – particularly in low-income areas. CHWs work with healthcare organizations to bridge the gap between cultures through education and outreach. Currently more than 100 organizations employ CHWs.

Recently Summit Academy OIC expanded its training for CHWs by offering night and weekend classes. Students who participate in the 50-week night and weekend program receive training in client advocacy, health education, health system navigation and community outreach. (The program can be completed within 20 weeks for students able to attend the full-time courses, offered from 8 a.m. – 3 p.m. weekdays.) Summit also provides job placement services for its graduates.

Summit is a nonprofit accredited educational and vocational training center in North Minneapolis that empowers adults residing in the most economically depressed neighborhoods in the Twin Cities to become educated, employed, contributing members of the community.