 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
ReGina Tardy, CHW Coordinator, Carla Roberts, CHW, and Sonia Batres, CHW. Homeless Prenata Program, 995 Market St., Suite 1010, San Francisco, CA 94103, 415-546-6756, reginatardy@homelessprenatal.org
It has been our experience that traditional CHW outreach follows the medical model, which is not a good fit for the population we work with: homeless and poor families. The medical model tends to look at the symptoms and determine a quick fix without addressing the root of the problem.
In our presentation, the community health workers will discuss how outreach on health issues has little effectiveness on families that are trying to deal with day-to-day obstacles. We will discuss an alternative method (holistic approach) that we utilize to address these issues.
We will also look at how our program has been successful in molding our community health workers into “change agents”. Through our extensive training process we prepare our CHW’s to “create the change they want to see in the world” by focusing their energy on their personal strengths. They create a workable life plan that consists of higher education, personal reflection and committing themselves to work on community issues. We will end our presentation with success stories from our current CHW’s who will talk about their personal experiences and how our program has changed their lives and how they have contributed their experiences to improve our program.
Learning Objectives:
Related Web page: www.homelessprenatal.org
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Homeless Prenatal Program
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.