Browsing by Author "Gonzalvo, Jasmine D."

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    Indiana community health workers: challenges and opportunities for workforce development
    (BMC, 2022) Rodriguez, Natalia M.; Ruiz, Yumary; Meredith, Ashley H.; Kimiecik, Carlyn; Adeoye‑Olatunde, Omolola A.; Kimera, Lynnet Francesca; Gonzalvo, Jasmine D.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Background: An interest in, and the need for, Community Health Workers (CHWs) in the United States is growing exponentially. CHWs possess a unique ability to relate to and build trust with communities in order to improve clinical outcomes, while building individual and community capacity. Given their critical role in addressing social determinants of health, expanding the CHW workforce is crucial. However, creating CHW jobs, facilitating training and certification, and establishing sustainable financing models to support this workforce has been challenging. Methods: A mixed-methods study consisting of an online survey and focus group discussions assessed the strengths, practices, and challenges to CHW workforce sustainability and expansion in the state of Indiana, including perspectives from both CHWs and employers. Results: Across 8 topics, mixed data analysis revealed 28 findings that were both complementary and unique across focus group and survey results. Results highlighted CHW skills and attributes, illustrated the recruitment and hiring process, and provided insight into measuring outcomes and outputs. Findings also indicated a need to build position validation, professional development, and billing and reimbursement capacity. Conclusion: Building and sustaining the CHW workforce will require creating an evidence base of roles and impact, increasing awareness of existing reimbursement mechanisms, and sharing best practices across employer organizations to promote optimal recruitment, training, supervision, career development, and funding strategies.
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    Pharmacist-Led Implementation of Brief Tobacco Cessation Interventions during Mobile Health Access Events
    (MDPI, 2023-04-07) Hudmon, Karen Suchanek; Czarnik, Julia S.; Lahey, Alexa M.; Crowe, Susie J.; Conklin, Megan; Corelli, Robin L.; Gonzalvo, Jasmine D.; Ellis Hilts, Katy; Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health
    To address gaps in care for individuals from under-resourced communities disproportionately affected by tobacco use, this pharmacist-led demonstration project evaluated the feasibility of implementing tobacco use screening and brief cessation interventions during mobile health access events. A brief tobacco use survey was administered verbally during events at two food pantries and one homeless shelter in Indiana to assess the interest and potential demand for tobacco cessation assistance. Individuals currently using tobacco were advised to quit, assessed for their readiness to quit, and, if interested, offered a tobacco quitline card. Data were logged prospectively, analyzed using descriptive statistics, and group differences were assessed by site type (pantry versus shelter). Across 11 events (7 at food pantries and 4 at the homeless shelter), 639 individuals were assessed for tobacco use (n = 552 at food pantries; n = 87 at the homeless shelter). Among these, 189 self-reported current use (29.6%); 23.7% at food pantries, and 66.7% at the homeless shelter (p < 0.0001). About half indicated readiness to quit within 2 months; of these, 9 out of 10 accepted a tobacco quitline card. The results suggest that pharmacist-led health events at sites serving populations that are under-resourced afford unique opportunities to interface with and provide brief interventions for people who use tobacco.