CHW – 91��Ƭ

91��Ƭ Participates in Newark Equitable Vaccine Initiative

Michelle Lang — Thu, 08 Apr 2021 19:07:47 +0000

91��Ƭ is one of the community organizations working to ensure residents of color have access to COVID-19 vaccines through the Newark Equitable Vaccine Initiative. The initiative kicked off on March 23 with a community vaccination event in the parking lot of the IHOP on Bergen Street.

91��Ƭ’s Health and Human Services Department was instrumental in helping to ensure the event’s success. The department’s community health workers (CHWs) registered individuals for vaccine appointments prior to the event and were on site to help check in vaccine recipients, alongside representatives from Urban League of Essex County, which was a partner with NCC in executing the plan for the day. Event participants also received information about free COVID-19 crisis counseling that is available through Family Service Bureau of Newark (FSB). 91��Ƭ’s Security Department provided transportation for NCC residents who had vaccine appointments at the event.

“This is another in the list of cooperative efforts between government, business and the nonprofit community to get those who face challenges vaccinated,” said 91��Ƭ CEO Richard Rohrman. “The level of cooperation and shared urgency has been something that is encouraging and shows us what we are capable of as a unified group. We were happy to be able to transport people to the event. This initiative is another much needed avenue to help us reach our shared goal of vaccinating as many residents as possible.”

Women check in for their vaccination appointment during the Newark Equitable Vaccine Initiative kickoff on March 23. Representatives from 91��Ƭ and the Urban League of Essex County were on hand to assist those receiving vaccines. A tent was set up in the parking lot of the IHOP on Bergen Street in Newark where individuals received vaccines and those involved in the initiative spoke about the importance of educating and vaccinating minority communities in the city.

NCC Chief Operating Officer Fred Hunter attended the kickoff event and spoke about how 91��Ƭ serves a large population of people of color and has made vaccine education and distribution a priority.

“There are many different areas of 91��Ƭ that are instrumental in getting the message out about the importance of getting folks vaccinated,” he said.

In addition to helping with the community vaccination event, 91��Ƭ, with the assistance of area pharmacies and the City of Newark Department of Health, has offered vaccines to residents and staff members at its senior housing buildings and skilled nursing facility. Education surrounding the vaccines for residents and staff members is ongoing.

“Vulnerable seniors in our nursing home and senior buildings were vaccinated in their homes,” Rohrman said. “The Newark Health Department has been outstanding.”

91��Ƭ Chief Operating Officer Fred Hunter addresses the crowd during the kickoff of the Newark Equitable Vaccine Initiative.

91��Ƭ Chief of Health and Human Services Arti Kakkar emphasized the importance of education and accessibility.

“When it comes to disparities in health, it is important to note for future endeavors why it exists because that needs to be addressed. When it comes to vaccination efforts, we need to make it easily accessible for Newark residents to be able to meet the vaccination goals set by the county and the state,” she said. “For successful implementation of a vaccination program, I strongly believe we need to address the hesitancy around the vaccines by community education, which we are doing with our community health workers, and also address emotional issues and anxiety that we are addressing through our crisis counseling support through FSB.”

Data supports the assertion that increased education and access to vaccinations for communities of color are important to help put an end to the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time of the kickoff event, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said that less than 5 percent of the Newark population had been fully vaccinated.

“With something like this, we’re providing access to people to get the vaccination, particularly in neighborhoods where people are more likely to die from COVID-19,” Baraka said. “These communities are three times more likely to succumb to the coronavirus and 10 times less likely to take the vaccine, which is why this event is extremely important.”

Funding for the Newark Equitable Vaccine Initiative comes from a $1 million grant from the Rockefeller Foundation to United Way of Greater Newark.

“The Newark Equitable Vaccine Initiative leverages Newark’s best resources for building equity and increasing access to the community,” said United Way of Greater Newark President and CEO Catherine Wilson. “It brings together local health care providers, community-based organizations, small business owners, clergy, elected officials and concerned citizens all working together to coordinate on distribution, connect residents with providers, share resources and promote accurate health information.”

Having a group of entities working together to help to educate and vaccinate the community will hopefully increase vaccine participation.

“No one organization, no one government can do this alone,” said Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo. “I want to see everyone engaged in this.”

Dr. Shereef Elnahal, president and CEO of University Hospital, told those in attendance that he and his staff have seen firsthand the devastating effect COVID-19 has had on communities of color. Because infections continue, he said the efforts of the Newark Equitable Vaccine Initiative are vital to fighting the virus.

“This pandemic is not over and its impact on Black and brown people has not ended,” Elnahal said. “We have to do this. We have to start now and we have to work together.”

Adenah Bayoh, IHOP Multi-Franchise Owner and Cornbread Co-Founder, allowed her Bergen Street IHOP location’s parking lot to serve as the kickoff event location. She was born and raised in Newark and volunteered at University Hospital when she was 12 years old. She said the initiative is personal to her and very important.

“I would shut down IHOP if I had to to make sure more people in the community get vaccinated,” she said.

Personnel from Rite Aid and Newark Community Health Center were on hand to administer vaccines throughout the day of the kickoff.

Rite Aid Division Vice President Margherita R. Cardello said the pharmacy is happy to be a part of the Newark Equitable Vaccine Initiative to increase access to information and vaccinations.

“It’s only possible with community groups and businesses working together seamlessly for the greater good,” she said.

NCCTI Launches Community Healthcare Worker Program

Michelle Lang — Sun, 24 Nov 2019 17:57:37 +0000

91��Ƭ Career & Technical Institute (NCCTI) began offering its newest program to students Oct. 21 — Community Healthcare Worker. The program trains individuals to become community health workers (CHWs), who help connect patients to resources within their communities to improve their health. It’s a fast growing sector. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average growth rate for CHWs is 11 percent from 2018 to 2028, which is much faster than average. The BLS says the median annual wage for CHWs in New Jersey is $51,560.

“Our Community Healthcare Worker program is a continuation of our portfolio of courses offered under the allied health care sector,” said NCCTI Director Rodney Brutton. “We’re excited about being on the front line of one of the fastest growing jobs in the health care field.”

To help students with their job search after graduation, NCCTI is partnering with several area hospitals to provide internships and employment opportunities.

Teaching the course is Wanda Johnson, who has extensive experience training others and has served as a CHW in Newark. She said NCCTI’s program is preparing students for their careers as CHWs. This includes learning the core roles and responsibilities they will have and how to interact with patients, taking into account different cultures and building trust.

“CHWs are usually members of the community who serve as the frontline advocates for patients who reside within the same community. CHWs are the bridge between the community residents and the health care medical professionals and will be a part of a multidisciplinary team, usually with doctors, nurses and social workers,” Johnson explained. “CHWs also aid in decreasing the utilization rate of the emergency rooms and inpatient hospital stays.”

To keep patients out of the hospital, CHWs follow up with them to ensure they are complying with doctors’ instructions, attending follow-up appointments and seeing any necessary specialists. CHWs also help link patients to help for substance use and mental health disorders.

“CHWs will help patients gain a sense of independence and accountability regarding their health as they learn to care about self,” Johnson said.

Instead of lecture, Johnson conducts her class as an interactive session where she engages in dialogue with her students and gets their input on the issues they are learning about.

In addition to weekly tests, Johnson plans to have her students teach her toward the end of the course to ensure they have absorbed the material.

“If my students have the ability to teach me what has been taught in the classroom then I’ll be confident that they will successfully execute the values and lessons that were taught in the classroom out in the community,” she said.

Johnson has always used that method when training, which she has been doing since the 1990s. She has held various positions in the health care insurance industry and was always asked to train new employees. She developed a passion for training and employee development and when she saw the opening at NCCTI to become a full-time instructor, she jumped at the chance.

Johnson first became involved in the CHW sector in April 2018. She was a supervisor in charge of two CHWs. After losing one of those employees after 90 days, Johnson had to absorb her caseload in addition to her supervisory role so she has firsthand experience performing CHW duties.

She said CHWs often become close with their patients and sometimes patients disclose information to their CHW that they don’t to doctors, nurses or even social workers. Building that rapport allows the CHW to gather all relevant information and better advocate for the patient.

Johnson was born and raised in lower Manhattan. She moved to Rahway in 2015 and has been working in Newark even before the move to New Jersey.

She looks forward to continuing to develop the Community Healthcare Worker program at NCCTI and helping to train future CHWs for the important role they fulfill.

NCCTI is an accredited post-secondary career and technical institution that offers the following programs: Automotive Technician, Diesel Technician, Building Trades Specialist, Clinical Medical Assistant, Patient Care Technician, Community Healthcare Worker, Culinary Arts Specialist and Business and Computer Technologies. NCCTI also operates a comprehensive Financial Opportunity Center and Bridges to Career Opportunities Program sponsored by the local and national Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) offices. For more information, call 973-824-6484, log onto or visit 274 South Orange Ave., Newark.