Community Health Workers

Community health workers promote wellness by helping people adopt healthy behaviors. They implement programs and advocate for people who may have limited access to health resources and social services.

Duties

Community health workers typically do the following:

• Coordinate care among individuals, communities, and health and social service systems
• Conduct outreach, such as through home visits
• Provide culturally appropriate health and informational resources
• Oversee case management and resource access
• Advocate for individuals and communities regarding housing, food security, and other needs
• Provide coaching and social support, such as nutrition training, recovery services for mental health and substance use disorders, and chronic disease management and prevention
• Provide services, such as basic health screenings and first aid
• Increase individual and community participation in assessments and education to improve health and well-being

Community health workers act as intermediaries between their clients and providers of healthcare and social services. They identify health-related issues, collect data, and discuss clients’ health concerns within the community. For example, community health workers might identify barriers preventing clients from access to transportation and provide referrals to resources that provide it.

Ideally, these workers have close ties to the communities they serve so that they understand their clients’ unique needs. They share that information with providers of healthcare and social services for determining appropriate programs and care. They also advocate for community wellness needs and conduct outreach to engage clients, assist with navigating healthcare, and improve coordination of care.

Community health workers may have different titles, depending on the population they serve. For example, community health representatives increase health knowledge and access to care for Tribal communities. Promotores de la salud reduce barriers to healthcare and social services in Spanish-speaking communities. Peer support specialists have experienced a mental health or substance use disorder and are in recovery while providing support to others experiencing similar challenges.

Community health workers work closely with other healthcare and social service providers, including registered nurses, social workers, and substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors.

Community health workers held about 65,100 jobs in 2024. The largest employers of community health workers were as follows:

Community health workers may spend part of their day in an office for activities such as recordkeeping and writing reports. However, they spend much of their time in the field to interact with community members, hold events, and collect data. They may travel to a variety of settings, including homes or medical facilities, to meet with clients.

Community health workers often collaborate with healthcare and social service providers as part of an interdisciplinary team.

Work Schedules

Most community health workers are employed full time. They may need to work evenings and weekends to attend community events, programs, or meetings.

To enter the occupation, community health workers typically need at least a high school diploma; some employers prefer to hire candidates who have postsecondary education. To attain competency, they typically complete a brief period of on-the-job training, and some states require certification.

The median annual wage for community health workers was $51,030 in May 2024.

Employment of community health workers is projected to grow 11 percent from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average for all occupations.

About 7,800 openings for community health workers are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.