Co-creation of a training for community health workers to enhance skills in serving LGBTQIA+ communities

Vanessa Kitzie; Julie Smithwick; Carmen Blanco; M Greg Green; Sarah Covington-Kolb

doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1046563

Co-creation of a training for community health workers to enhance skills in serving LGBTQIA+ communities

Front Public Health. 2023 Mar 16:11:1046563. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1046563. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Vanessa Kitzie¹, Julie Smithwick², Carmen Blanco², M Greg Green², Sarah Covington-Kolb²

Affiliations

¹ School of Information Science, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, United States.
² Center for Community Health Alignment, University of South Carolina Arnold School of Public Health, Columbia, SC, United States.

Abstract

This paper describes creating and implementing a 30-h LGBTQIA+ specialty training for community health workers (CHWs). The training was co-developed by CHW training facilitators (themselves CHWs), researchers with expertise in LGBTQIA+ populations and health information, and a cohort of 11 LGBTQIA+ CHWs who theater tested and piloted the course. The research and training team collected cohort feedback through focus groups and an evaluative survey. Findings stress the importance of a curriculum designed to elicit lived experiences and informed by a pedagogical framework centered on achieving LGBTQIA+ visibilities. This training is a vital tool for CHWs to foster cultural humility for LGBTQIA+ populations and identify opportunities to support their health promotion, especially considering their limited and sometimes absent access to affirming and preventative healthcare. Future directions include revising the training content based on cohort feedback and adapting it to other contexts, such as cultural humility training for medical and nursing professionals and staff.

Keywords: CHW training protocol; LGBTQ; LGBTQIA+; community health workers; curriculum development.

Publication types

Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Community Health Workers*
Curriculum*
Focus Groups
Health Promotion
Health Services Accessibility
Humans

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and part of a larger project entitled, Community Health Workers and Medical Librarians Promoting Health in LGBTQIA+ Communities (LG-246360-OLS-20). The funding period for the Project is from 09/01/20 to 08/31/23. The PI on this Project is VK. For more information, the project website can be accessed via the following link: https://bit.ly/lgbtqia_chws.