Am J Public Health. 2026 Sep;116(S4):S295-S304. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2026.308660.
ABSTRACT
Objectives. To examine the roles and activities performed by community health workers (CHWs) involved in the national Community Health Workers for COVID Response and Resilient Communities (CCR) program and examine differences based on setting characteristics. Methods. We used data from a CHW self-report survey (n = 689) conducted February through March 2024 in the United States. We ran a series of ordered logistic regression models to examine the association between setting characteristics (i.e., type of organizational setting, organizational experience with CHWs, and populations of focus) and CHW core roles and COVID-19‒specific activities. Results. A total of 69.2% of CHWs in the analytic sample reported performing all 10 core roles. Organizational experience with CHWs and populations of focus emerged as the most salient predictors of CHW core roles and activities. Conclusions. A substantial proportion of CHWs performed the full range of core roles. Results suggest that CHWs in the CCR program tailored their roles and activities according to the unique factors of the communities in which they worked. Public Health Implications. Programs such as CCR may result in CHWs using a wide range of core roles across multiple settings. (Am J Public Health. 2026;116(S4):S295-S304. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2026.308660).
PMID:42647810 | DOI:10.2105/AJPH.2026.308660
