CHC Expands Access to Community Health Worker Services in Caswell and Rockingham
Yanceyville, NC, November 4, 2021 – Compassion Health Care, Inc. (CHC) is excited to announce the expansion of staff to include two new Community Health Worker (CHW) positions.
The organization has had a CHW on staff for several years supporting the needs of Caswell residents for several years. One of the new positions will expand access in Caswell, and the other will provide services from CHC’s James Austin Health Center in Eden, NC. This expansion is being made possible through a combination of financial support. One of the positions is made possible with funding from the US Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA). The other new position, as well as the existing CHW position already in place, is made possible with funding obtained partnership with the “Regional Engagement to Advance Community Health” (“REACH”) Project.
“Expansion of our Community Health Worker program means that our region better equipped to achieve improved health outcomes, especially among our community’s most vulnerable populations. This program can help people who need to access health care we and our partners can provide, but financial and other barriers sometimes prevent that from happening in the way it should. We intend to make positive impact on that with this expansion.” – William Crumpton, Chief Executive Officer, Compassion Health Care, Inc.
A CHW is a person in the community who is placed in a trusted position to help those in need of better access to health services to improve health management. CHW’s work to address health disparities within our communities and provide a link between healthcare, social services, and community members. By doing this, CHW’s have proven to be a beacon of hope for many who have been underserved for far too long.
The CHW Project has improved health outcomes for those who have been at the highest risk for chronic disease in Caswell, and with the added benefit of two more CHWs, CHC plans to broaden its reach into the Rockingham community. The Project not only provides better health outcomes for people at high risk of chronic disease, but it also addresses the systematic barriers preventing positive health outcomes and creates a system of care that provides equitable access to all residents of the region. Not to mention it also creates a career pathway for healthcare workers.
Compassion Health Care, through the REACH Partnership that serves the Dan River Region, connects CHW’s to the work of community paramedics who, together provide a combination of non-clinical and clinical expertise. This positions the provision of enabling services to truly meet individuals where they are, which depending on need, can be in the patient’s home.
Throughout CHCs 40 plus years, the nonprofit medical center has grown to meet the needs of the community, which includes primary care, specialty care, urgent care, behavioral health, psychiatry, lab services, and radiology. Other services include a new mobile health unit that has been traveling throughout Rockingham and Caswell, a medication assistance program, a sliding fee for those who can’t afford to pay full price for medical services, and a pharmacy network with local partnering pharmacies to expand access to prescription medications for all patients. The CHW partnership is yet another added service CHC will bring to the community to achieve excellent patient-centered healthcare for all, which falls in line with their values of compassion, commitment, integrity, excellence, and equity.
To learn more about the REACH Partnership (formerly referred to as the Community Health Worker project), visit: https://www.thehealthcollab.com/access-to-healthcare/reach-partnership