Lucia Colindres CHW Leader and NACHW Ambassador joined NACHW ED Denise Smith for an international panel discussion with Last Mile Health on Community Health and Social Equity during COVID-19. Also attended by Moderator Gaurab Basu Co-Director of the Center for Health Equity Education & Advocacy (CHEEA) at the Cambridge Health Alliance; NACHW Ally Alexandra Quinn, Chief Executive Officer of Health Leads and Katie Bollbach, Director, US Public Health Accompaniment Unit at Partners In Health.

Lucia brought the awareness of a CHW role in Rochester in response to the pandemic, historic inequity and protests concerning the death of Daniel Prude. In response, Lucia is creating authentic partnerships with local organizations across ethnicity and sector to share resources and unify their voices. CHWs in her community are deeply connected to local issues of health, equity and social justice.
NACHW will continue to amplify the perspectives, roles and impact of CHWs. In the last three months, we have hosted four national webinars on CHW self-care, how CHW Networks are responding to COVID-19, community mental health needs and CHWs’ roles in addressing racism. Hundreds of participants from across the country are learning about these local initiatives. When we come together, we can share our stories, our struggles and strategies to support our communities! To support your work with individuals, families, and communities, NACHW has developed a series of COVID-19 resources highlighting national perspectives from CHWs on their information, resource, and self-care needs. See also below an article with CHW insights on the impact of COVID-19 to their personal and professional lives.