Abstract
Community health workers (CHWs), including promotores de salud and Community Health Representatives, have worked in the United States for over half a century. In this chapter, we summarize the complex history of how and why CHWs across the United States and tribal nations have organized themselves over the last two decades at the local, regional, state, and national levels. We describe some of the major milestones that contributed to conceptualizing CHWs, CHRs, and promotores as a single workforce and a recognized health profession. Next, we describe efforts to establish local and state CHW networks across the country. Finally, we provide a detailed history of over a decade of collective work resulting in the launch of the National Association of Community Health Workers (NACHW) in 2019, including the personal reflection of a founding NACHW board member who is active at the state and national levels.
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Notes
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Plenary presentations and workshops were made at the national Unity conferences to engage CHWs from across the country in organizational planning in 2016 (Atlanta, 7/17–20) and 2017 (Dallas, 8/6–9). Scientific sessions and CHW section presentations were made, similarly, to engage CHWs and allies in organizational planning at APHA annual meetings in 2016 (Denver, 10/30–11/2) and 2017 (Atlanta, 11/5–8). In-person planning retreats were held in Phoenix (10/7–8, 2016), in Atlanta (7/21–23/17), and in Chicago (2/24–25/18). The strategic planning committee also met with consultants in Dallas on 8/6/17.
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Acknowledgments
The authors thank the following NACHW leaders for participating in planning discussions about this chapter, for contributing historical information that supported its drafting, and/or for copy edits to the draft: Mae-Gilene Begay, Ramona Dillard, Durrell Fox, Lisa Renee Holderby-Fox, Gail Hirsch, and Floribella Redondo. The authors would also like to recognize all members of the founding NACHW Board of Directors:
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Mae-Gilene Begay
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Joelisa Castillo
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Naomi Cottoms
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Ramona Dillard
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Durrell Fox
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Catherine Haywood
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Wandy Hernandez
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Gail Hirsch
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Lisa Renee Holderby-Fox
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Maria Lemus
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Sergio Matos
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Susan Mayfield Johnson
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Anita McDonnell
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Floribella Redondo
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Carl Rush
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Alise Sanchez
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Julie Smithwick
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Napualani Spock
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Katherine Sutkowi
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Ashley Wennerstrom
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Geoffrey Wilkinson
Further, the authors would like to acknowledge other key leaders and supporters in the CHW field that contributed to its development and multi-decade efforts for organizing and recognition:
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J. Nell Brownstein
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Yvonne Lacey
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E. Lee Rosenthal
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Cathy Stueckemann
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Kalahn Taylor-Clark
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Noelle Wiggins
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Wilkinson, G.W., Wennerstrom, A., Cottoms, N., Sutkowi, K., Rush, C.H. (2021). Uniting the Workforce: Building Capacity for a National Association of Community Health Workers. In: St. John, J.A., Mayfield-Johnson, S.L., Hernández-Gordon, W.D. (eds) Promoting the Health of the Community . Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-56375-2_15
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