Community Health Workers
in the News

The Community Health Worker Initiative (CHWI), under Maine's State Innovation (SIM) Project, is pleased to announce the selection of four pilot projects. These pilots will work with CHWI partners over the next two years to help Maine scale up our infrastructure and systems to support CHWs as a part of a transformed healthcare system in our state.

The pilots are a diverse group of organizations that will look to integrate best practices to help address chronic disease management, increase preventive screenings, improve patient experiences and promote appropriate use of healthcare resources. Below is a brief description of the pilot projects:

1. DFD Russell Medical Center will embed CHW(s) within their patient care team to engage patients in the management of asthma and to link patients to breast cancer screening. CHWs will provide education, assist with navigation of the healthcare system and make referrals to other healthcare and community resources.
2. MaineGeneral will add CHW services to their Prevention Center to provide education and linkages to medical homes, behavioral health services, cancer screenings and other healthcare and community services. The focus will be on patients who: do not have a medical home, use urgent care/ED, opt out of cancer screenings and need medication safety education, and/or need diabetes prevention and support in the management of their chronic disease(s).
3. City of Portland, Public Health Division will integrate two CHWs into local community care teams (CCTs) affiliated with CarePartners and other partner sites to target individuals without medical homes to: reduce gaps in care, enroll patients in health insurance, reduce hospitalizations, incorporate patient-reported outcomes and assess impact of CHW/CCT model on patient's health.
4. Spectrum Generations will improve care for high-risk older, disabled and/or care giving adults who have chronic conditions by: reducing their risk/need for high cost interventions and resources through the integration of CHWs within their agency and SeniorsPlus. The CHWs will: link clients to community and primary care provider/patient centered medical home care, promote wellness, medication adherence and self-management through group and individual-level interventions and education.

For more information about the Pilot Projects or the CHW Initiative please contact Barbara Ginley at bginley@mainemigrant.org or by phone at (207) 441-3364