Together we take the steps toward greatness

Successful management of a chronic condition can be exhausting and time consuming. Every day you must set aside time to take medications, fill prescriptions and travel to doctor appointments. And these tasks must be done in addition to managing the rest of your life; such as work, childcare and house chores. 

All of us have the same 24 hours in a day and can only take care of what we need with the time we have. All of us have to prioritize how we spend our time every day. But not all people get to decide how to prioritize their time.

When a crisis hits we might not have the means to care for ourselves. If you unexpectedly lost your home finding a place to live takes priority over getting to your doctor’s appointment. If your refrigerator is always empty finding a meal takes priority over filling a necessary prescription. These are just two examples of how circumstances can become a barrier to attaining or maintaining health. Many in our community are in this situation every day. 

Removing barriers to health

Pain, disease and general ill health are the number one obstacle to leading a productive and joyful life. When members of our community are constantly suffering from ill health they are not able to participate fully in their job, home or community life.

But what if we could remove, or at least lessen, these barriers to health? Stop for a moment and imagine what our community would look like if our neighbors didn’t have to decide between finding food for dinner or paying the doctor. How would our community be impacted if everyone had the ability to choose to pay for food and medicine? Would everyone in our community benefit if some were lifted up and empowered?  

A Community Health Worker is someone who is helping to remove barriers to health. They work to eliminate barriers so community members can be empowered to care for themselves today, tomorrow and every day to follow. They build community capacity by increasing health knowledge and self-sufficiency through a range of activities such as outreach, education, informal counseling, social support and advocacy. 

Compelled to help

To achieve any kind of change toward greatness we must take the steps together. Greatness in our community begins by taking a step to improve daily living for some so that all may benefit. 

Do you, or someone you know, feel compelled to help empower others to improve their personal health and therefore the health of our entire community? The HCAN Community Health Worker Certification Program will give you the skills you need. The twelve week program has multiple sessions throughout the year.

If you are not able to apply for the upcoming session then consider the one beginning in the next season. Financial assistance and scholarships are available. For more information please contact the Director of Education and HUB Development, Ella Thomas at 513-245-4348 or ethomas@healthcareaccessnow.org.