We Can Leave Tobacco Behind

It was the summer of 1957, and the way my parents met was like something out of an Elvis movie: a waterskiing blind date. My mother, Annette, a skinny 17-year-old, hit the water so hard at Denver’s Cherry Creek Reservoir that it pulled off her bikini top. Mortified, she hid behind her best friend Dee, who struggled to cover Mom while my 20-year-old eventual dad, Sherman, reclaimed her top.

Could you blame him for asking her out on a second date? And another after that?

To be that young in 1957 was to be hale, hearty, and invincible. They went to sock hops and double features. They went spelunking in the Rockies and took entry-level jobs with odd hours. Soon they eloped and started a family. My two sisters and brother came just a year and a half apart from one another. It was a typical home full of chaos and kids – and cigarettes.

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Want to Make America the Healthiest Nation by 2030?

Logo for National Public Health WeekAmericans, you need to take better care of yourselves. Most of us who feel passionate about healthy lifestyles know this, which is why we fight so hard to schedule you for screenings, sign you up for health care, help you put down that cigarette, and encourage you to watch your diets.

Every April, people who feel passionate about public health come together as part of National Public Health Week in an effort to understand the issues and strengthen policies. The goal is to make America the healthiest nation in the world by 2030 – just one generation away. The effort, organized by the American Public Health Association, “develops a national campaign to educate the public, policymakers, and practitioners about issues related to each year’s theme.”

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Report on Washington State’s Popular CHW Training Program

Community health workers in Washington are getting better at their jobs.

Washington State’s Popular CHW Training Program Evaluation

That’s according to the results of a state-wide program survey published by the Washington State Department of Health’s Office of Healthy Communities. Since 2011, the program has trained over 1000 people in the role of community health worker (CHW) in everything from core competencies such as organizational skills to health-specific topics such as behavioral health care.

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Spend Down Your 2014 Budget and Build CHW Skills

October is almost over–time to use up your budget before the end of the year before you lose it. An easy way to enrich your training program and build skills among your staff is to offer new courses from CHWTraining.org. Courses for non-clinical health workers include: •    Health Literacy: A Start
•    Introduction to the Newest Vital Sign
•    Navigating Health Insurance
•    Behavioral Healthcare
•    Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes
•    Facilitating Online Professional Development View the full list of courses here: http://chwtraining.org/course Register for a cohort of 10 by November 15 and receive 20% off.

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Ebola Educational Materials for CHWs

If there’s one enormous lesson US-based health organizations can take from the Ebola crisis, it’s to be prepared. Yet in my experience working with health departments across the United States, this preparedness rarely trickles down to community health workers.

CHWs are, as One Million Community Health Workers says, “uniquely positioned to improve access to care, health-seeking behavior, and healthy behavior.” CHWs can play a critical role in educating communities in Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) awareness and protection and also contact tracing and surveillance.

If you haven’t yet begun training your CHWs in what to do with Ebola in your community, start now. Here are a few dependable resources you can begin with by circulating to your team:

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Tell Your CHW Story at the Patient Navigator/Community Health Worker Conference

Our friends at the 6th Annual Patient Navigator/Community Health Worker Conference have announced the date for the upcoming event (May 7, 2015) and have released a call for submissions for breakout sessions. If you haven’t been to this conference, you should consider going. CHWs and navigators from all around the country come, and it’s quickly emerging as the preeminent event in the field.

Telling Our Stories: The 6th Annual Patient Navigator/Community Health Worker Conference

Thursday, May 7, 2015

Four Points Sheraton Norwood

1125 Boston-Providence Highway (Route 1), Norwood, MA

Registration will open in early spring.

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Free On-Demand Webinar: Introduction to E-Learning for AHECs

Length: 60 minutes

Everyone talks about online learning, but what does it really mean? We’ll cut through the jargon to explain the basics of health-based e-learning, and discuss why offering online courses can help you boost your enrollment numbers. We’ll identify the elements you’ll need to structure your online training program.

Watch this on-demand webinar to learn how to get the whole team on board, what the technology requirements are, and why your learners are probably asking for online module delivery. You’ll walk away with knowledge about online training that will help energize your organization and help you increase participation in your program.

View the webinar now >>

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Register for What Every AHEC Needs To Know About Online Training

CHWTraining.org is hosting a free webinar event on October 7 for any AHEC administrator hungry for information about how to expand education and enrollment through e-learning. Directors, program administrators and trainers from AHECs are invited to attend.

Introduction to E-learning: What Every AHEC Needs To Know About Online Training is complimentary and will begin at 1pm Eastern (10am Pacific), during which you’ll learn:

  • How to get the whole team on board
  • What the technology requirements are
  • Why your learners are probably asking for online module delivery
  • And much more!

Space is limited for this event, so you don’t want to miss your chance to get in on the action. Please register now!

LIVE WEBINAR DETAILS:
Date: Oct. 7, 2014
Time: 10am Pacific/1pm Eastern
Length: 60 minutes

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10 Smart Ways To Help CHWs Learn Better

Following the positive response we received from our article Ways to Increase E-learning Participation among health worker professional development programs, we offer 10 more ways to help learners lock away lessons.

1. Address common reasons learners don’t retain information.

The most common reason why people don’t retain learning is they don’t finish a course. If you can find out what the underlying reasons are for dropping out, you can present your learners with an experience they can use. In most cases, withdrawals are due to family, job commitments (very common with CHWs who balance working in the field with completing a course), vacations and poor time management. Change up when and how you offer your information, and you can make it easier for students to complete.

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Register for "What Every AHEC Needs To Know About Online Training"

When: Tues., Oct. 7, 2014, 1pm ET
Length: 60 minutes

CalendarAdd to Calendar

Everyone talks about online learning, but what does it really mean? We’ll cut through the jargon to explain the basics of health-based e-learning, and discuss why offering online courses can help you boost your enrollment numbers. We’ll identify the elements you’ll need to structure your online training program.

In this webinar, you’ll learn how to get the whole team on board, what the technology requirements are, and why your learners are probably asking for online module delivery. You’ll walk away with knowledge about online training that will help energize your organization and help you increase participation in your program.

Register now >>

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