Community Health Workers
Promote health within a community by assisting individuals to adopt healthy behaviors. Serve as an advocate for the health needs of individuals by assisting community residents in effectively communicating with healthcare providers or social service agencies. Act as liaison or advocate and implement programs that promote, maintain, and improve individual and overall community health. May deliver health-related preventive services such as blood pressure, glaucoma, and hearing screenings. May collect data to help identify community health needs.
Also known as: Apprise Counselor, Behavioral Health Advocate, Behavioral Health Worker (BHW), Benefits Outreach Specialist, Community Development Coordinator, Community Health Advisor, Community Health Advocate, Community Health Agent, ...
Annual Salary
Median annual wage (May 2024)
Job Outlook
Projected growth, 2024–2034 (Much faster than average)
What You'd Do
- Advise clients or community groups on issues related to improving general health, such as diet or exercise.
- Attend community meetings or health fairs to understand community issues or build relationships with community members.
- Contact clients in person, by phone, or in writing to ensure they have completed required or recommended actions.
- Distribute flyers, brochures, or other informational or educational documents to inform members of a targeted community.
- Identify or contact members of high-risk or otherwise targeted groups, such as members of minority populations, low-income populations, or pregnant women.
- Maintain updated client records with plans, notes, appropriate forms, or related information.
- Refer community members to needed health services.
- Administer immunizations or other basic preventive treatments.
- Advise clients or community groups on issues related to diagnostic screenings, such as breast cancer screening, pap smears, glaucoma tests, or diabetes screenings.
- Advise clients or community groups on issues related to risk or prevention of conditions, such as lead poisoning, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), prenatal substance abuse, or domestic violence.
- Advise clients or community groups on issues related to sanitation or hygiene, such as flossing or hand washing.
- Advise clients or community groups on issues related to self-care, such as diabetes management.
- Advise clients or community groups on issues related to social or intellectual development, such as education, childcare, or problem solving.
- Advise clients or community groups to ensure parental understanding of the importance of childhood immunizations and how to access immunization services.
- Advocate for individual or community health needs with government agencies or health service providers.
- Conduct home visits for pregnant women, newborn infants, or other high-risk individuals to monitor their progress or assess their needs.
- Identify the particular health care needs of individuals in a community or target area.
- Interpret, translate, or provide cultural mediation related to health services or information for community members.
- Monitor nutrition of children, elderly, or other high-risk groups.
- Perform basic diagnostic procedures, such as blood pressure screening, breast cancer screening, or communicable disease screening.
Top Skills
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Knowledge Areas
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Education Level Distribution
Percentage of workers in this occupation by education level
Technology & Tools
Software and tools commonly used in this role
In-Demand Technologies
Other Tools
Work Styles
Personality traits and work styles important for this career
Key Abilities
Cognitive, physical, and sensory abilities important for this role
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Work Activities
General types of job behaviors occurring on this job
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Work Environment
Physical and social factors that influence the nature of work
Related Careers
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Salary data: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024. Outlook data: BLS Employment Projections, 2024–2034.
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license.