Community Health Worker Elder Advocate Specialist

The Community Health Worker, Elder Advocate Specialist Certificate of Achievement is part of the Community Health Worker (CHW) Program. The certificate is designed to prepare individuals for positions working with older adults in community health and social service agencies and programs. It emphasizes competencies for working with older adults adopted by the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education (AGHE). These include culturally responsive outreach, case management, client-centered intake and counseling skills, and community organizing and advocacy. As part of their education, students will complete an internship with a local agency serving older adults.

Enrollment Data Fall 2016-Spring 2018 HLTH 201-122 HLTH 202-80 HTLH 203- 77 HLTH 10- 514 CHW Certificates Awarded: Spring 2017: 32 Spring 2018: 35 We anticipate an additional 10-12 students completing the CHW Elder Advocate Specialist Certificate annually.

The goal of the Community Health Worker (CHW) Elder Advocate Specialist Certificate is to provide students with foundational knowledge and skills required for entry level employment in public health, health care and related settings with an emphasis on serving the burgeoning older adult population. The new Elder Advocate Specialist Certificate will be one of five (5) certificate options in the Health Education Department’s Community Health Worker Program. To enroll in the Elder Advocate Specialist Certificate, students must either complete a pre-requisite course – Health 59: Introduction to the CHW Certificate – or submit an application along with documentation that they have been working or volunteering for at least a year as a CHW or in a related position. These are the same requirements for all five of the CHW Certificate Options. Upon Completion of this certificate, students will be able to: • Analyze and evaluate public health concepts and information for health promotion. • Assess and integrate professional skills necessary for employment in the CHW field. • Evaluate and implement entry-level proficiency in CHW core competencies for working effectively with diverse individuals, groups and communities. • Analyze and apply key concepts and skills for working with older adults

Item 3. Program Requirements The first in the series of foundational classes: HLTH 201: CHW Principles & Practice 1- 5 units Must be taken after completing HLTH 201: HLTH 202: CHW Principles & Practice 2 - 5 units Concurrently or after completing HLTH 202: HLTH 203 CHW Internship Placement & Performance- 4 units Must be taken after completing HLTH 202: HLTH 87 - Assessment and Services for Older Adults - 3 units Any semester HLTH 10 - Health and Aging - 3 units HLTH 91H - Elder Abuse Prevention 1 unit Total number of units = 21 Note that students will complete a CHW Certificate Passport detailing an individual plan for completing the requirements of any CHW Certificate.

CCSF has offered HLTH 10, Health and Aging, for over 15 years. Professionals, policy makers, advocates, and educators have been sounding the alert for many years about critical shortages in the workforce of health care professionals and paraprofessionals with training in gerontology to meet the needs of the burgeoning elderly population. In particular, they have noted the need for culturally competent workers with training in chronic care management, knowledge of the broad spectrum of community services and supports, age related conditions including cognitive impairments, and familiarity with public entitlement programs for older adults. Many students in existing CHW specializations are currently working with older adults or plan to do so lack special training in these areas.

There are no similar programs at any community college in the wider Bay Area. Students may study similar competencies and complete degrees in public health or health education at the bachelor’s level at San Francisco State University and the University of California, Berkeley.