Southern Utah AHEC Community Health Workers Program

Description

The Southern Utah AHEC Community Health Workers program in rural Sevier County, Utah, connected people with health-related social needs to community resources.

The program partnered with:

• Intermountain Health
• Utah Center for Rural Health
• Utah Area Health Education Centers (AHEC)

The program was funded by the Intermountain Community Care Foundation.

Services offered

In order to participate in the program, individuals had to be referred by a qualified organization. Eligible individuals had a health-related social need and at least one of the following:

• One or more chronic medical or behavioral conditions
• No primary care provider
• An emergency room visit within the last three months

Community health workers (CHWs) completed home visits and motivational interviewing (a conversational approach to helping people make decisions) with clients and connected them to community resources, including safety-net programs.

Results

In 2022, the Southern Utah AHEC Community Health Workers program received 48 referrals, partnered with 7 organizations and facilities, and worked with an average of 9 clients per month. In 2023 and 2024, the program received a total of 162 referrals. The program collaborated with 12 organizations and facilities and worked with an average of 35.4 clients per month.

One client was living in unsafe, unsanitary conditions and had memory issues as well as difficulty managing her medications. This client moved into a skilled nursing facility and reported improved mood, medication management, and quality of life.

Another client and their family were living in their car. CHWs helped them find housing, connected them to a primary care provider and food pantry, and helped them apply for assistance programs.

Challenges

One challenge was starting a program like this from scratch. Program coordinators needed to train people to become CHWs and then show community organizations and facilities the value of using this program's services. In addition, coordinators needed a way for these organizations and facilities to refer clients to the program and keep clients' information secure.

CHW trainees needed time to learn about available resources for clients and to acquire the skills needed to connect them to those resources.

Replication

Decide at the beginning who your target audience is and set parameters for who can be referred to the program and how referrals will happen.

Form relationships with community resources, and take the time to get to know their work and how they can best help your clients. Program coordinators regularly met with local organizations, including the Intergenerational Poverty Council and the Providers' Council.

Contact Information