Washington Spotlight

Northwest Regional Primary Care Association (NWRPCA) Community Health Worker Network

The NWRPCA (Seattle, Wash) is a nonprofit membership association that works to ensure equal access, regardless of financial or insurance status, to primary and preventive health care for residents living in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington.

It partners with the Washington Association of Community & Migrant Health Centers and the Oregon Department of Human Services Office of Multicultural Health in the joint coordination of Community Health Worker Networks in those states, respectively. Both networks meet on a quarterly basis for training and resource sharing. With the help of a $30,000 Regence Foundation grant, NWRPCA plans to offer preliminary Community Health Worker training and networking opportunities in Idaho, specifically in migrant and farm worker communities.

According to the Health Resources and Services Administration there were 86,000 community health workers in the United States in 2000, and that number continues to grow. Community health workers, commonly referred to as promotores de salud in the migrant health community, help facilitate health care access for underserved communities, address health disparities and improve health outcomes.