Curricula, Training, and Internship

Conceptual Approach for Curricular Development 

The Community Health Worker Academy at Charles R. Drew University has developed an innovative, standards-based curriculum grounded in best practices, national guidelines, and meaningful stakeholder engagement. Our core curricular development includes several distinctive features:

1. A foundational consultation process with national CHW experts to guide our curriculum development approach, process, and content.
2. Utilization of the Community Health Worker Core Consensus (C3) Project from the National C3 Council to establish curricular standards and guide learning objectives.
3. Utilization of the Community Health Worker Core Consensus (C3) Project from the National C3 Council to establish curricular standards and guide learning objectives.
4. Application of popular education principles, which emphasize collaborative learning through participatory methods like problem-solving, role-playing, and hands-on lab sessions.
5. Incorporation of adult learning principles that value learners’ lived experiences and culminate in an apprenticeship model, adapted for limited in-person interaction during the COVID-19 pandemic.
6. Use of a modified apprenticeship model to enhance virtual collaborative learning, including panel discussions, interviews with experienced CHWs and professionals in health care, academia, and public health, and virtual tours of clinical settings.

This comprehensive approach is designed to foster a sustained learning community for CHWs, built on real-world engagement and collaboration with multidisciplinary health care experts.

Training Overview

Our innovative, standards-based core curriculum for clinical CHWs includes ten modules across three core areas:

1. Establishing a professional CHW identity and Competencies 
   • Topics: CHW history, roles and skills, CHW organizations and advocacy, practicing self-awareness and cultural humility, and more.
2. Understanding the Health Care System and Workplace Dynamics
   • Topics: U.S. health care systems, interprofessional workplace interactions, technology in health care, workplace communication, code of ethics, and public health fundamentals.
3. Exploring Social and Structural Determinants of Health
   • Topics: Health disparities, social determinants of health, community engagement, care management, and humanistic values in care.

Curricular development included collaboration with clinic-based CHWs from our partner health care organization, ensuring modules include current, relevant, and hands-on content with a strong focus on clinical application and real-world skills.

Internship Experience

Upon completion of the core course, participants will begin a six-month internship at Providence or a partner health care site. During this period, interns will:

• Receive mentorship and supervision.
• Take on real-world roles supporting patients and communities.
• Assist with care coordination and access to community services.
• Develop skills for navigating clinical environments and addressing social determinants of health.

CHW Academy participants will help residents and patients adopt healthier behaviors, improve their access to care, and connect with essential resources.

Internship Objectives

• Increase employment opportunities for CHW Academy graduates.
• Provide hands-on, job-site training in clinical and hospital environments.
• Strengthen participants’ ability to support patients and families.
• Enhance community access to preventive and medical care services.

CHW Internship Responsibilities

• Resource navigation and linkage.
• Enrollment assistance.
• Documentation and information management.
• Ongoing education and skills development.

Continuing Education

While completing the internship, participants will engage in Continuing Education sessions hosted by CDU. These sessions build on core competencies and include topics such as:

• Service enrollment and access.
• Patient education strategies.
• Evaluation and interpretation of health data.
• Understanding and using electronic health records.

These sessions reinforce adult learning principles by emphasizing experience-based, collaborative learning and further building a connected community of practice among CHWs and clinical partners.