Training Catalog

Community Health Worker (CHW) Core Skills Competency Training 

Format: Virtual
Length: 120 hours
Target Audience: Organizations/teams planning to establish a CHW program or are planning to hire CHWs, HR managers or CHW supervisors
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description: The Institute of Public Health Innovation’s (IPHI) community health worker (CHW) training is a dynamic learning experience that involves a mix of teaching and participatory methods. The team typically meets with stakeholders before the implementation of the curriculum to ensure trainings meet the essential needs of the project. Generally, IPHI recommends that this initial core training course is followed by ongoing monthly continuing education and complemented by training for other team members at the site where the CHWs will work.

Learning Objectives:

1. Define the scope of practice and understand and implement the roles, competencies, and responsibilities of a CHW
2. Acquire skills, tools, and methods for engaging the community and healthcare teams to minimize gaps in care
3. Incorporate nonjudgmental communication to support health equity
4. Incorporate concepts of ethics, professionalism, stress, and conflict management when working in a professional environment
5. Use competencies at the individual and group levels when conducting health outreach, community organizing, and advocacy efforts
6. Understand the commitment to social justice, cultural humility, and client and community-centered engagement

CHW Foundations 

Format: Virtual
Length: 4 hours
Target Audience: Individuals/organizations who want to learn about CHWs and their roles (supervisors, HR managers, and clinical staff). It’s also open to organizations that have already hired CHWs and those who are planning to hire CHWs.
Pre-Requisite: This course is a pre-requisite for all other team integration offerings.

Course Description: This course is an introduction to the CHW role as a critical public health liaison between their organizations and their communities. The course covers the history of the CHW role, the CHW scope of practice and core responsibilities, the value and impact CHWs deliver to both clients and colleagues, and the broader social and personal context that shapes the CHW experience.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe the CHW role and core responsibilities
2. Explain 3 social determinants of health that contribute to the CHW experience
3. Explain the importance of a systems approach to integrating CHWs
4. Identify 3 ways that CHWs add value to their organizations
   

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Integration Readiness

Format: Virtual
Length: 4 hours
Target Audience: Organizations/teams planning to establish a CHW program or hire CHWs, HR managers, and CHW supervisors.
Pre-Requisite: CHW Foundations

Course Description: This course covers the preliminary considerations that organizations need to take into account before starting a CHW program. Participants will assess their current level of readiness and identify areas where they need to build the necessary infrastructure to support their CHWs. CHW Integration Models, CHW Program Standards, and general best practices will also be discussed.

Learning Objectives:

1. Evaluate the extent to which your organization is ready to bring on a CHW
2. Describe 3 CHW Integration Models and the pros and cons of each
3. Explain how the CHW Program Standards enable a successful CHW program

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Integration Planning I: Funding and Sustainability

Format: Virtual
Length: 4 hours
Target Audience: Organizations/teams planning to establish a CHW program or hire CHWs, HR managers, and CHW supervisors.
Pre-Requisite: CHW Foundations; Integration Readiness

Course Description: This course provides an in-depth look at the action planning steps needed to fund and sustain their CHW program. Sources of CHW funding will be reviewed and compared. Strategies for advocacy and stakeholder engagement will be discussed. Participants will learn about the CHW certification process.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe 3 funding sources to sustain a CHW program
2. Explain the pros and cons of CHW Certification
3. Implement 3 strategies for engaging organizational stakeholders to buy into your CHW program

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Integration Planning II: Policy and Practice

Format: Virtual
Length: 4 hours
Target Audience: Organizations/teams planning to establish a CHW program or hire CHWs, HR managers, and CHW supervisors.
Pre-Requisite: CHW Foundations; Integration Readiness; Integration Planning I

Course Description: Leveraging insights from the readiness assessment, this course
explores the importance of CHW policy. Guidelines for CHW work practice, including supplies, equipment, data collection, and record-keeping, will be discussed. Participants will review CHW Safety and Emergency Procedures and strategies for involving CHWs in organizational decision-making.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe the importance of CHW policy in establishing an effective CHW program
2. Explain the key components of CHW workload management.
3. Describe 3 ways organizations can provide tactical on-the-job support for CHWs

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Integration Planning III: CHW Development

Format: Virtual
Length: 4 hours
Target Audience: Organizations/teams planning to establish a CHW program or hire CHWs, HR managers, and CHW supervisors.
Pre-Requisite: CHW Foundations; Integration Readiness; Integration Planning I & II

Course Description: This course provides participants with the HR considerations needed to support their CHW throughout the CHW Career Lifecycle. This course covers tactical strategies for recruiting and hiring, onboarding, and engaging CHWs at your organization. Participants will explore salary and compensation considerations. Professional development methods and strategies for minimizing turnover will also be discussed.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe how recruiting efforts for CHWS may differ from other positions at your organization
2. Describe the core components of a CHW job description
3. Share 3 best practices for developing interview questions for CHWs
4. Explain the importance of engaging CHWs throughout their career lifecycle

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Supervisor Strategies I – The CHW Role

Format: Virtual
Length: 4 hours
Target Audience: Individuals who are supervising CHWs and/or managing CHW supervisors. It’s also open to organizations that have already hired CHWs and those who are planning to hire CHWs.
Pre-Requisite: CHW Foundations

Course Description: This course provides CHW supervisors with a detailed overview of the CHW role, core functions, and responsibilities. Participants will explore strategies for how they can best support their CHWs in their work and how to effectively communicate about the CHW role to colleagues and community members. Topics include the CHW Code of Ethics and Core Values and methods for supportive supervision.

Learning Objectives:

1. Define 3 core functions of the CHW role
2. Identify 3 ways you can support your CHW in carrying out the functions of their role
3. Explain why the CHW Code of Ethics and Core Values are important for the CHW profession
4. Describe what supportive supervision is and why it is important to CHWs’ success

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Supervisor Strategies II – The Supervisor Role

Format: Virtual
Length: 4 hours
Target Audience: Individuals who are supervising CHWs and/or managing CHW supervisors. It’s also open to organizations that have already hired CHWs and those who are planning to hire CHWs.
Pre-Requisite: Supervisor Strategies I – The CHW Role

Course Description: This course equips CHW supervisors with the skills needed to best support their CHWs. Topics include models of CHW supervision, supervisor roles and competencies, and effective conflict management strategies. Tips for effective and supportive oversight of CHW work and conducting CHW performance reviews will also be discussed.

Learning Objectives:

1. List 3 characteristics that make great CHW supervisors
2. Describe 3 CHW Supervision Models
3. Use conflict management best practices to address a variety of supervisor challenges
4. Implement a variety of supervision techniques to promote CHW performance

Healthy and Equitable Communities Workshop

Format: Virtual
Length: 16 hours (4 4-hour modules)
Target Audience: Public health professionals, any organization or individuals wanting to learn more about health equity
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description:

This course provides a comprehensive overview of the components of health equity. The program focuses on reviewing data on racism and other forms of oppression and their impact on health. Topics include implicit bias, root cause analysis, community engagement strategies, and metaphors and mindsets for equity communications. Participants will explore how policies, systems, and environmental changes affect inequities, and will practice using tools for conducting an equity impact review. This course includes a variety of instructional  methods including group discussion, break-out sessions, and hands-on learning activities and exercises.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify sectors and partners needed to address health equity and social determinants of health (SDOH)
2. Develop organizational and programmatic strategies to promote diversity, inclusion, and equity
3. Identify key values, words, and phrases to convey equity messages
4. Build the skills needed to conduct an equity impact review

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Health Equity Leadership 

Format: Virtual
Length: 16 hours (10 1.5-hour modules)
Target Audience: Frontline staff, managers, and leadership
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description: This course provides a comprehensive actionable program around equity leadership. The program focuses on understanding the historical roots of racism to develop equity champions who work to promote equity in the department. Topics include equity leadership, equity communications, root cause analysis, anti–racism, power dynamics, models of oppression and racism, and white privilege/ white dominant culture. Both personal-level and organizational-level strategies for mitigating stereotypes and bias are discussed as well. This course includes a variety of instructional methods, including group discussion, break–out sessions, and hands–on learning activities and exercises.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify root causes of health inequities
2. Design strategies to promote diversity, inclusion, and equity
3. Create and deliver messaging to promote equity to decision-makers
4. Support a culture of openness to having ongoing conversations about race and racism
5. Build the skills necessary to foster organizational transformation 

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Community Participation and Power 

Format: Virtual
Length: 2 hours
Target Audience: Healthcare providers, local health department staff, public health organizations
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description: This course applies the continuum of community participation as a strategy for engaging leaders to improve health outcomes. Participants will assess who is represented in collaborative efforts to ensure equitable participation and inclusion. Participants will discuss expressions of power and the types and distribution of power and leverage their understanding of power dynamics to create more equitable and inclusive partnerships. This course includes a variety of instructional methods, including group discussion, break–out sessions, and hands–on learning activities and exercises.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe how the participation of community members as leaders in the improvement of health is beneficial
2. List the levels of community participation
3. Recognize expressions of power and how the types and distribution of power change
4. Identify the three levels of power dynamics and how each can be influenced to create more equitable and inclusive partnerships

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Implicit Bias 

Format: Virtual
Length: 4 hours
Target Audience: Healthcare providers, local health department staff, public health organizations
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description: This course explores the concept of implicit bias. Participants will learn how the brain’s normal functions lead to implicit bias and will discuss how implicit biases lead to health inequities. Participants will discover how our social identities help define what implicit biases we have and will practice strategies to address our own implicit biases. This course includes a variety of instructional methods, including group discussion, break–out sessions, and hands–on learning activities and exercises.

Learning Objectives:

1. Define implicit bias and how it differs from explicit bias
2. Describe how the brain’s normal functions lead to implicit bias
3. Explain how implicit biases lead to health inequities
4. Identify how our social identities help define what implicit biases we have

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Equity Messaging and Motivation 

Format: Virtual
Length: 4 hours
Target Audience: Healthcare providers, local health department staff, public health organizations
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description: This course explores metaphors and mindsets that shape thinking about equity in the U.S. Participants will review dominant health models and their impact on messaging approach. Participants will identify key values, words, and phrases to convey equity messages, practice developing and refining messages to target audiences, and gain support for strategies designed to promote equity. This course includes a variety of instructional methods, including group discussion, break–out sessions, and hands–on learning activities and exercises.

Learning Objectives:

1. Explain the importance of values in equity messaging
2. Utilize communication tools to support the development of effective messages
3. Apply best practices for framing messages on population health and equity

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Introduction to Cultural Humility

Format: Virtual
Length: 1 hour
Target Audience: Healthcare providers, local health department staff, public health organizations
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description: This course provides an introductory overview of cultural humility at the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and organizational levels. Participants will explore how culture and identity influence their work with individuals, community members, and professional colleagues from diverse backgrounds. Strategies for self–reflection will be reviewed with the goal of strengthening public health professional’s ability to provide culturally appropriate services for the communities they serve.

Learning Objectives:

1. Define cultural humility and responsiveness for public health practice
2. Describe the tenets of cultural humility at the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and organizational levels
3. Recognize different aspects of culture and how these can influence people’s thinking and behavior
4. Practice self–reflection when treating people of different cultural and linguistic backgrounds

Grant Writing Workshop

Format: Virtual
Length: 3 hours (can be offered as 2 separate 90-minute sessions)
Target Audience: Non-profit organizations and/or teams looking to pursue grant funding opportunities
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description: Non-profit leaders know how important diverse revenue sources are to ensuring the health of an organization. Grants are a funding mechanism that allow non-profits to cover operational, administrative, and programmatic costs to address important issues within their communities. While the opportunities are vast, understanding how to find and apply for the right funding opportunities for your organization can be a challenge.

This 3-hour course provides a high-level overview of the steps involved in identifying, pursuing, and securing grants and the documentation that organizations need to have in place to be able to quicky respond when new funding opportunities present themselves. Dive into the world of nonprofit fundraising and discover how you can leverage grant funding opportunities to support your organization.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe the various types of grants available for non-profits
2. Prioritize and align funding opportunities with your organization’s mission
3. Research common sources of funding opportunities
4. Describe the components of a grant proposal
5. Conduct a RFP review
6. Develop a proposal narrative that addresses funding requirements

COVID-19 Overview

Format: Virtual
Length: 2 hours
Target Audience: Healthcare providers, local health department staff, public health organizations
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description: This course provides an overview of the Covid–19 virus and vaccines. Participants will learn the associated symptoms of Covid–19, strategies to mitigate the spread of Covid–19, and the various vaccines and boosters that are available to the public. The course will also explore how to answer frequently asked questions about Covid–19 and the vaccines, as well as how to counter misinformation and vaccine hesitancy. Participants will discuss vaccine considerations for specific populations and learn about resources for additional information.

Learning Objectives:

1. Explain in plain language the basic information about COVID–19 and the vaccines
2. Identify populations at risk for severe disease from COVID–19
3. Identify and respond to FAQs and misinformation about COVID–19 and the vaccines
4. Explain the similarities and differences between authorized COVID–19 vaccines
5. Identify barriers to getting vaccinated and methods to eliminate barriers

Utilizing Racial Equity Impact Assesments for Performace Improvement

Format: Virtual
Length: 12 hours (6 2-hour modules)
Target Audience: Public health performance improvement network (phPIN) learning community
Pre-Requisite: None

Course Description: The Institute for Public Health Innovation, in partnership with the National Network of Public Health Institutes, is offering a free training series on utilizing Racial Equity Impact Assessments (REIAs) as a tool for racial health equity performance improvement. Over the course of six sessions, this training series will enable public health professionals to utilize REIAs to work authentically with populations most impacted by inequities to collect and analyze qualitative and quantitative data, conduct root cause analyses, develop alternatives to amplify equity, and measure racial equity outcomes.

During these sessions, you’ll learn from experts in racial equity impact assessments and authentic community engagement and practice applying skills to real scenarios. Participants will have the opportunity to work through case studies during each session to gain experience in conducting REIA under the guidance of subject matter experts.