Research Publications

One in five adults in California had a mental illness in 2018-2019. Some 23.5% of these adults had unmet need for mental health services as did an estimated 64.5% adolescents with major depression. The shortage of licensed behavioral health professionals, which affects communities throughout…

In California, one of the most culturally diverse states in the country, health care must bridge cultural and linguistic divides to serve all communities equitably. As trusted community members with lived experience, community health workers and promotores (CHW/Ps) have a long history of connecting…

Over the course of 12 years, the Blue Shield of California Foundation committed nearly $20 million to growing a pool of community health center leaders who were prepared to be effective agents of change in their organizations and in the safety net field. This signature investment, the Clinic…

Community health workers (CHWs) are an increasingly important member of the healthcare and public health professions who help build primary care capacity. Yet, in spite of the exponential growth of CHW interventions, CHW training programs, and CHW certification and credentialing by state agencies,…

The California Improvement Network’s (CIN) latest report, CIN Connections: Foundations for Health, features tips for resilient leadership and building partnerships between health providers and community-based organizations from Access Community Health Network’s chief operating officer, Donna…

Community health workers (CHWs) are vital contributors to high quality and equitable health services, particularly to vulnerable populations. CHWs provide a key link between community resources and the clinical team as well as advocate on behalf of communities regarding social determinants of…

Community health workers (CHWs) and promotores de salud are playing an increasingly important role in the delivery of high quality and equitable health related services, particularly to vulnerable populations. Using a Theory of Change framework, this report connects intervention and support…

Community health workers (CHWs) and promotores de salud are playing an increasingly important role in community-based and clinical care settings. This research, supported by the Blue Shield of California Foundation, represents the culmination of the first phase of a two-part project aimed at…

Since its launch in 2008, the Clinic Leadership Institute Emerging Leaders Program (the Program) has been at the forefront of efforts to cultivate the leadership pipeline in California’s community health centers field. Created through a partnership between Blue Shield of California Foundation and…

During the spring and summer of 2013, some 61 stakeholders—including 52 parents of children with special heath care needs and nine providers and policymakers—were systematically interviewed for their responses to and reflections on six ethnographic models produced for the Lucile Packard Foundation…

This research brief presents a qualitative assessment of the leadership training needs of dental directors from community health centers in California. This brief explores dental directors’ roles and responsibilities, their primary challenges as dental directors, and their perceptions of their own…

As reported earlier, nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs) play a critical role in the delivery of primary care in California, providing the majority of primary care services in over 20% of the state’s community clinics. This follow-up, qualitative research explores how and why…

Community health workers (CHWs), medical assistants (MAs), certified nurse assistants (CNAs), and home health aides (HHAs) are among California’s most highly demanded and largest allied health groups. This issue brief summarizes the estimated numbers, average wages, employment settings, duties, and…

Minnesota is often ranked as the healthiest state in America. However, for many Minnesotans, high quality health care and high health status are still elusive. In particular, several racial and ethnic minority groups in Minnesota experience higher rates of disease and premature death than white…

There is a growing interest in the use of community health workers in various roles in the US health care system. These workers go by various titles and names—including promotora and community health advisor—but all assist members of the communities they serve. As the role of these workers becomes…

This brief provides an overview of an emerging and unique workforce in California. Community health workers (CHWs) and promotores are public health professionals who carry out a variety of health promotion, case management, and service delivery activities at the community level. This profession…