Abstract
Faith-based organizations (FBOs) can play an important role in improving health outcomes. Lay community health advisors (CHAs) are integral to these efforts. This paper assesses the sustainability of a CHA training program for congregants in African-American and Latino FBOs and subsequent implementation of educational workshops. The program is unique in that a health care chaplain in an academic medical center was central to the program’s development and implementation. Forty-eight CHAs in 11 FBOs were trained to teach workshops on cardiovascular health, mental health, diabetes, and smoking cessation. Two thousand four hundred and forty-four participants attended 70 workshops. This program has the potential to be a model to educate individuals and to address health inequities in underserved communities. Health care chaplains in other medical centers may use this as a model for enhancing community engagement and education.
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Marin, D.B., Karol, A.B., Sharma, V. et al. M.I.C.A.H. Project HEAL: Sustainability of a Faith-Based Community Health Advisor Training Program in Urban Underserved Communities in the USA. J Relig Health 61, 2527–2538 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-021-01453-w
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-021-01453-w