Community Health Worker

Location: Chicago, Illinois

Business Unit: Rush Medical Center

Hospital: Rush University Medical Center

Department: Preventive Medicine-Res Adm

Work Type: Full Time (Total FTE between 0.9 and 1.0)

Shift: Shift 1

Work Schedule: 8 Hr (8:00:00 AM - 5:00:00 PM)

Rush offers exceptional rewards and benefits learn more at our Rush benefits page (

Pay Range: $21.61 - $30.53 per hour
Rush salaries are determined by many factors including, but not limited to, education, job-related experience and skills, as well as internal equity and industry specific market data. The pay range for each role reflects Rush's anticipated wage or salary reasonably expected to be offered for the position. Offers may vary depending on the circumstances of each case.

Summary:
The Community Health Worker (CHW) is responsible for operationalizing Rush's social determinant of health and chronic disease strategy within the community. The CHW will be a liaison to community members and patients as well as community partners, and conduct health and/or social determinant screenings, provide telephonic and in-person navigation services and self-management support in the community and in the Rush clinical settings such as primary care and/or the emergency department as needed. The CHW will also assist with different community initiatives such as health programming or other health promotion efforts as needed. Exemplifies the Rush mission, vision and values and acts in accordance with Rush policies and procedures.


Qualities we are seeking include Cultural humility, ability to build trustful relationships with clients, nonjudgmental and empathetic listener; shows compassion and respect. Shows acceptance of people and their life journey. Demonstrates passion and commitment. Understands strengths and challenges of their community and which strategies will work best.


This role is a grant-funded contract position with potential for job continuation depending on funding.

Required Job Qualifications:
• A high school graduate or GED.
• 1-2 years of experience of working in community settings as a community health worker or navigator is desirable.
• The ability to work independently and solve problems along with strong multi-tasking, organization, communication, and expertise with information systems and Microsoft Office Suite.
• Demonstrated knowledge and/or experience with care management-related service functions such as: patient interviews, discharge planning/social service basic assessment and referral processes, community resources.
• Must be comfortable working in a variety of settings, with people's different living situations, and across all levels of socio-economic status.
• Experience in diverse community settings preferred in particular Chicago's West Side
• Excellent written and verbal communication and interviewing skills.
• Applicant must live in the Chicagoland area, have their own transportation with proof of current auto insurance, be able to navigate the Chicagoland area, and be available to work evenings and weekends.

Preferred Job Qualifications:
• Experience in community service through volunteering, internships, committee service, community networks, etc.
• Commitment to teamwork, collaborative approach and customer service focus preferred.
• Experience working in and/or with communities of color
• Bilingual/bicultural including Spanish, Polish, and Mandarin speaking ability desired but not required


Responsibilities:
1. Provide health education and information in order to assist clients in achieving health goals by discussing behavioral risk factors, recommended lifestyle changes, and ways to reduce barriers to treatment adherence.
2. Create tailored strategies for addressing community health concerns by assisting clients to overcome obstacles to care.
3. Build individual and community capacity by increasing health knowledge and self-sufficiency through a range of activities such as outreach, community education, counseling, social support and advocacy.
4. Address barriers that inhibit clients' access to health care and information.
5. Provide direct services (e.g., measuring/monitoring blood pressure, providing health screenings) in a variety of settings.
6. Conduct screenings (including Rush's social determinants of health screener and health risk assessments), one-on-one visits, groups sessions and phone calls within various community settings.
7. Provide navigation services to patients, including scheduling appointments for primary and specialty care follow-up
8. Assist patients and community members with public benefits enrollment and redetermination, including SNAP, Medicaid, TANF, and other programs
9. Conduct verification of insurance plans and assist out-of-network patients with connecting to care at an appropriate clinic
10. Provide social support to clients as needed.
11. Motivate and praise clients for even small accomplishments and assist them to develop strategies to overcome barriers in order to achieve their behavior change goals.
12. Communicate with interprofessional providers via Epic and in-person huddles
13. Mediate between participants and healthcare and social service systems or community resources (e.g., management of healthcare utilization) to improve the quality and cultural competency of service delivery.
14. Advocate for individuals and communities to ensure clients receive the care they need in localized accessible settings.
15. Refer clients to community resources and follow up using various platforms (e.g., NowPow).
16. Manage a caseload of patients and community members from a variety of sources, including but not limited to COVID-positive patients, Emergency Department (ED) patients, school-based health center student families, Cancer Center patients, and referrals from Rush providers in a range of care settings.
17. Monitor a daily list of discharged patients and referral work queue for outreach and follow-up.
18. Attend community events and health fairs to complete social needs screenings, resource coordination, and information sharing about Rush and community programs and services
19. Performs other duties as assigned.


Rush is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics.