Community Health Advisor Training

Health disparities, insufficient healthcare provider numbers, and community participatory approaches have spawned an increased usage of community health advisors (CHA). Examination of CHA training is minimal. A case study was conducted with five women who completed CHA training to explore their experience. Interpretive synthesis was employed with two interviews and the investigator’s journalings. As the women came together to be trained, their stories told of an encounter where they gathered as learners in an experience that was personally transforming and communally enriching. Two patterns—Gathering the CHAs AS Learners and Gathering the CHAs AS Doers—and their related themes emerged from the CHAs’ stories. What was learned was their stories are familiar to all of us and show the complex issues of living in community—the constant pull of daily existence as they engaged in a never-ending struggle to create movement for themselves and others within the context of everyday mundane. Perhaps creating a nurturing, safe harbor for questioning where new thinking can occur has equipped these women with the learning tools to take their new-found roles and put it out into their community.