AzCHOW certifies first 5 CHWs in Arizona

This year the Arizona Community Health Worker Association (AzCHOW) has piloted the first voluntary certification program for CHW's in Arizona. This November they have successfully certified the first 5 CHWs in state through the newly created program and hope to have many more complete the certification process. 

The five newly certified CHWs (From Left to right) Norma Ochoa, Martha Ochoa, Dolores Encina, Chayito Sanchez,  Floribella Redondo

The news of the newly certified CHWs came on the eve of the Sunrise Application hearing. A process discussed and voted on by the state's Health Committee of Reference. To read more about this process click here. Excitiment and a sense of self-fulfillment was evident amongst the CHWs. 

The CHWs who participated in the certification have an average of 15 years of experience (62 years combined experience),this certification process helped them to recognize and describe their unique capabilities and skills and feel more connected to the CHW workforce. Chayito Sanchez one of the five to undergo the certification process spoke with the AzPRC team and expressed her new sense of value and worth immediately following the certification. When asked what this meant to her Chayito said the following:

"Esto nos ayudara a diseminar más de nuestro trabajo. Como promotoras de salud esto es una gran ayuda porque nos ayuda no solamente ser valoradas por la comunidad de salud si no también valorarnos nosotras mismas.

Es importante para mí porque comprendo aún más el rol y la importancia de la promotora en la comunidad, en los hogares que tentamos y ayudamos. A nosotras nos gusta decir que la promotora es el corazón de la comunidad, y con mucha compasión y orgullo buscamos el puente para los recursos de salud para nuestra comunidad."

"This will help us spread the word of what our work really is. As CHWs this is of great help because it helps us not only to be valued by the health community but also to value ourselves and our work.

It is important for me because I understand the role and the importance of CHWs even more; in the households we touch and help. We like to say that the CHW is the heart of the community, and with great compassion and pride we seek the bridge for the neccessary health resources our community needs." 

Chayito, like all certifed and soon to be certified CHWs has undergone a competency orientation. This orientation includes online trainings, verification of core competency trainings, a background check, assessements of essential knowledge and skills as well a clear documentation of their years of service. the Competency Orientation focused not only on the 10 Core Competencies that all CHWs must know in order to work effectively in Arizona, but also included modules on advocacy and skill-building to support a strong, unified and standardized CHW workforce in our state. The Voluntary Certification process will be open to the public in early 2018. In January, AzCHOW will release a list of application deadlines by region. Below is a flowchart depicitng the routes which CHWs can take to reach voluntary certification as well as the direct link to the AzCHOW website. 

To learn more about the certification process and connect with AzCHOW directly click here! 

To read a recent news story about the Central Arizona College partnership follow the link here!