title: Lessons learned from a community-academic initiative: the development of a core competency-based training for community-academic initiative community health workers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Despite the importance of community health workers (CHWs) in strategies to reduce health disparities and the call to enhance their roles in research, little information exists on how to prepare CHWs involved in community-academic initiatives (CAIs). Therefore, the New York University Prevention Research Center piloted a CAI-CHW training program.
  
  
  METHODS
  We applied a core competency framework to an existing CHW curriculum and bolstered the curriculum to include research-specific sessions. We employed diverse training methods, guided by adult learning principles and popular education philosophy. Evaluation instruments assessed changes related to confidence, intention to use learned skills, usefulness of sessions, and satisfaction with the training.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Results demonstrated that a core competency-based training can successfully affect CHWs' perceived confidence and intentions to apply learned content, and can provide a larger social justice context of their role and work.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This program demonstrates that a core competency-based framework coupled with CAI-research-specific skill sessions (1) provides skills that CAI-CHWs intend to use, (2) builds confidence, and (3) provides participants with a more contextualized view of client needs and CHW roles.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Food Studies and Public Health, Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA. yr24@nyu.edu
authors.forename: Yumary
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ruiz
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Matos
authors.forename: Smiti
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kapadia
authors.forename: Nadia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Islam
authors.forename: Arthur
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cusack
authors.forename: Sylvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kwong
authors.forename: Chau
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Trinh-Shevrin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003153:Community Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration; D003150:Community Health Workers / Q000193:education*; D003479:Curriculum; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007373:Interinstitutional Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009519:New York City; D016730:Program Development; D015397:Program Evaluation; D014495:Universities / Q000458:organization & administration; D055815:Young Adult