Glossary Web

Glossary of Terms

California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) Initiative	CalAIM is a multi-year initiative by the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to improve the quality of life and health outcomes of the state’s population by implementing broad delivery system, program, and payment reform across the Medical program.
Community-based Care Management Entities	CB-CMEs are a network of health care and social service providers responsible for ensuring that participants in California’s Medical Health Homes Program receive all services from this program, as well as conducting outreach and engagement.
Community-based Organization	CBOs include a range of organizations ― such as social service agencies, nonprofit organizations, and formal and informal community groups ― that often work in partnership with health care entities by providing nonclinical services that address health related social needs.
Community-connected Health Workforce	“Community-connected health workforce” is an umbrella term coined in this project to describe all unlicensed health professionals who either have lived experience in or are trusted members of the communities served — including those with the formal title of community health worker or promotor, as well as those working as recovery specialists, navigators, health coaches, and many other roles. The term is used to emphasize the shared characteristics and broad importance of this workforce across medical, behavioral, and public health settings.
Community Health Worker (CHW)	Community Health Worker (CHW) is an umbrella term that encompasses several categories of frontline public health workers – including Community Navigators, Promotora, Health Coach, Community Health Advisor, Community Health Aid or Outreach Worker, Enrollment CHW. They are trusted by the community that they serve. CHWs can be trained to provide community outreach, facilitate care coordination, bridge gaps in unmet social needs, support enrollment in health insurance, navigate health systems, build trust between health care providers and and mistrusting community members; enhance access to community based services. They are best suited to address the Social Determinants of Health (SDoH).
Communities of Practice (COP)	Communities of Practice (COP) is a group of people who share a common interest, and become more knowledgeable through interaction among themselves. A COP requires a community, a shared interest, and shared experiences with the interest.
Cultural Competence	Cultural Competence refers to knowledge, interpersonal skills, behaviors, attitudes, and policies that allow health professions educators, practitioners, and CHWs to understand, appreciate, and respect cultural differences and similarities in cross-cultural situations. Cultural competency acknowledges these variances in customs, values, beliefs, and communication patterns by incorporating these variables in assessment, treatment of people and in training of all health professionals. Cultural competence provides information, and services in the language and educational and cultural context that is most appropriate for the people that are served.
Continuing Education	Continuing Education (CE) is a training activity or series of training activities offered to members of the current workforce who have already completed a training program in their profession. CE sessions are offered to existing professionals and do not include students as primary participants.
Diabetes Community Resource Center (DCRC)	Diabetes Community Resource Center (DCRC) is a community partnership for addressing unmet social needs while providing self-management education for chronic diseases. The program is housed at the International Pre-Diabetes Center. The program supports high risk populations to improve health outcomes for chronic diseases among underserved populations. The program is supported and staffed by trained/ certified Community Health Workers (CHWs).
Economically Disadvantaged	Economically disadvantaged is a term used to refer to a person from a family with an annual income below a level based on low-income thresholds, according to family size established by the United States (US) Census Bureau, adjusted annually for changes in the Consumer Price Index, and adjusted by the Secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services, for use in all health professions programs. A family is a group of two or more people.
Educationally Disadvantaged	An educationally disadvantaged person is someone who comes from a social, cultural or educational environment that has demonstrably and directly inhibited the person from obtaining the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to develop and participate in a health professions education or training program.
Health Disparity Population	Health disparity population has a significant disparity in the overall rate of disease incidence, prevalence, morbidity, mortality, or survival rates in the population as compared to the health status of the general population. It further includes populations for which there is a significant disparity in the quality, outcomes, cost, use of, access to, or satisfaction with health care services, as compared to the general population.
Health Professional Shortage Area	Health professional shortage area is a federal designation that is used to identify areas, populations, and facilities that have a shortage of either primary care, dental, or mental health providers. It is measured by the ratio of available discipline-specific providers to: the population of the area; a specific population group; or the number of those served by the facility Federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics are automatically designated as having a health professional shortage, or within a shortage area.
Health Resource and Services Administration (HRSA)	The Health Resource and Service Administration (HRSA) is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services located in North Bethesda, Maryland. It is a primary federal agency for improving access to health care services for people who are uninsured, isolated or medically vulnerable. HRSA programs provide equitable health care to people who are geographically isolated and economically or medically vulnerable.
Medically Underserved Community	A medically underserved community is a geographic location or population of people eligible for designation by the federal government as a Health Professional Shortage Area; Medically Underserved Area; Medically Underserved Population, or Governor’s Certified Shortage Area for Rural Health Clinic. As an umbrella term medically underserved community also includes populations such as people experiencing homelessness, migrant or seasonal workers, and residents of public housing.
Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP)	Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP) is a behavior change program that is designed to prevent or delay progression to Type 2 diabetes, and has been shown to reduce the incidence of diabetes by 71 percent in persons age 60 years or older. Starting on April1, 2018, Medicare began paying for the intervention with a goal of preventing Type 2 diabetes among Medicare beneficiaries with pre-diabetes.
National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP)	The National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP) is a partnership of public and private organizations working to prevent or delay Type 2 diabetes. Partners make it easier for people at risk for Type 2 diabetes to participate in evidence-based lifestyle change programs to reduce their risk of Type 2 diabetes.
Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP)	The Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) is a Title V funded program by the United States Department of Labor (DOL). The program provides part-time community service training to low-income persons age 55 and older. Program participants gain at least an average of 20 hours per week paid experience and receive at least the federal minimum wage in a wide variety of community service activities. At IPDC – SCSEP: participants have the opportunity to be trained as Community Health Workers, leading to Certifications in this field and are placed in long term employment roles in Federally Qualified Community Health Centers upon completion of their training. Participants whose individualized Employment Plan aligns with giving back to their communities in this way: are up-skilled with core competencies, build capacity on lived experiences and support health systems in closing gaps for social determinants of health. IPDC – SCSEP represents a successful model for workforce expansion: engaging older Americans in high need and high demand job areas within the health care industry. The partnership for the workforce development/ expansion: includes IPDC, a Workforce Development Board and a network of Federally Qualified Community Health centers. Additionally, IPDC works with DOL to establish Standards for the Community Health Worker Program (CHW), and IPDC is the Sponsor for a DOL Approved, CHW, Apprenticeship Certification program.
Social Determinants of Health (SDoH)	The Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) are the conditions in the environment where people are born. live. work, play, worship, age and retire. These conditions affect a wide range of health functions and outcomes, including prevalence of chronic diseases and health risks. CHWs who are from the local communities are trained to better understand and engage communities in closing the gaps for these risks, with self-management and disease prevention education. Therefore, Trained/ Certified CHWs can play a critical role in the promotion of health equity and closing gaps in SDoH by promoting and supporting evidence based programs in local communities.