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Public Understanding of and Engagement With Community Health Workers and Promotores de Salud: Findings From Two National Surveys
ORIGINAL RESEARCH ¡ª Volume 22 ¡ª April 9, 2025
PEER REVIEWED
Figure 1.
Settings in which community health workers were encountered, US, 2022. Data were obtained from respondents in 2 national surveys: FallStyles, conducted in English in September 2022 among the general public, and Estilos, conducted among a panel of people who identified as Hispanic or Latino and offered primarily in Spanish, in September through November 2022. Data are from a subset of respondents who indicated they had been helped by a community health worker (FallStyles, n = 570; Estilos n = 401).
| Settings in which CHWs were encountered | FallStyles, % | Estilos, % |
|---|---|---|
| At a clinic or hospital | 60.8 | 64.2 |
| In my home (eg, a home visit) | 14.3 | 22.7 |
| In my community or place of worship | 21.0 | 22.2 |
| Within the social service system | 17.2 | 18.8 |
| At my job (not including CHW coworkers) | 9.3 | 12.4 |
Figure 2.
Activities in which community health workers assisted survey respondents, US, 2022. Data were obtained from 2 national surveys: FallStyles, conducted in English in September 2022 among the general public and Estilos, conducted among a panel of people who identified as Hispanic or Latino in September through November 2022. Data are from a subset of respondents who indicated they had been helped by a community health worker. For the question on social services, FallStyles n = 565 and Estilos n = 401. For the question on health-related and cross-cutting activities, FallStyles n = 570, and Estilos n = 401. For social services–related items, only items for which at least 10% of either group (FallStyles or Estilos) indicated being helped with are shown.
| Activity | FallStyles, % | Estilos, % |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-cutting activities | ||
| Communicate needs with health care or social service providers | 16.9 | 45.2 |
| Communicate across cultures | 15.7 | 45.1 |
| Communicate community needs | 25.4 | 32.9 |
| Health-related activities | ||
| Get medical care | 45.1 | 59.8 |
| Health information in my culture | 16.0 | 57.0 |
| Physical activity | 24.9 | 52.7 |
| Enroll in health insurance | 17.7 | 46.9 |
| Manage chronic conditions | 24.1 | 39.3 |
| Mental health care | 18.3 | 36.8 |
| Cancer screening | 22.4 | 35.2 |
| Substance use treatment | 5.3 | 23.4 |
| Quit smoking | 6.6 | 20.7 |
| Pregnancy/parenting | 4.8 | 16.1 |
| Manage cancer | 4.6 | 10.8 |
| Social service–related activities | ||
| Agency connections | 12.2 | 25.0 |
| Food | 11.4 | 23.8 |
| Transportation | 4.2 | 18.7 |
| Clothing/household | 3.4 | 15.4 |
| Employment | 4.3 | 10.5 |
The opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors’ affiliated institutions.