title: Community health workers in Canada: innovative approaches to health promotion outreach and community development among immigrant and refugee populations.
abstract: This article provides results from an empirical case study that showcases a community health worker practice targeting immigrants and refugees in Canada. The study focuses on the Multicultural Health Brokers practice, which offers an innovative approach to health promotion outreach and community development addressing broad social determinants of health. This article offers new evidence of both the role of community health worker interventions in Canada and community health workers as an invisible health and human services workforce. It also discusses the Multicultural Health Brokers contribution both to the "new public health" vision in Canada and to a practice that fosters feminist urban citizenship.
authors.affiliation: Institut de recherche en santé publique de l'Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada (Dr Torres); Institute of Women's Studies (Dr Spitzer), Institute of Population Health (Drs Spitzer and Labonté), Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine (Drs Amaratunga and Labonté), and Faculty of Social Sciences (Dr Andrew), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Justice Institute of British Columbia, New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada (Dr Amaratunga); School of Public Health and Social Policy, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada (Dr Amaratunga); and Faculty of Health Sciences, Flinders University of South Australia (Dr Labonté).
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Torres
authors.forename: Denise L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Spitzer
authors.forename: Ronald
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Labonté
authors.forename: Carol
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Amaratunga
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Andrew
mesh_terms: D002170:Canada; D003150:Community Health Workers; D065246:Culturally Competent Care; D016208:Databases, Factual; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D024382:Professional Role; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012036:Refugees; D012922:Social Change