Community Healthcare Worker program to launch this August at Kettering College

A new program aimed at helping connect people living in underserved communities and providing them with basic needs and healthcare is set to launch from Kettering College. 

Johnjé Jasper is leading the charge to help people who live in underserved communities after moving to the Miami Valley with the goal of becoming a nurse, which she accomplished. She has since spent time working in the emergency room at Kettering Health.

She was quoted in an article from WDTN talking about her motivations, saying, “My mom is an immigrant from South Africa, my dad was adopted at a young age, and even though I did grow up in a single parent home and worked through college, I was able to be here, get my bachelor’s degree and now I’m in this program so I can help others do the same.”

Currently, Jasper is working as the Program and Data Collection Coordinator for the new Community Health Worker Certificate Program at Kettering College. Community Health Workers are people who help to create better connections between healthcare providers and the community members they serve.

Jasper went on to talk about the importance of the Community Health Worker role, saying, “The Community Health Worker role is a liaison between the community and the health care side, so they can actually connect people with resources to help them meet their health goals.” 

Community Health Workers work in the communities where they live rather than traveling to other counties to work. Jasper talked about needing applicants who are passionate about healthcare and helping people. There is no prior experience needed to apply for the program, and anyone interested is encouraged to apply. Jasper noted that there is a special need for applicants who live in Trotwood and West Dayton counties and people who have been, or are still, experiencing health disparities. 

“Because they will be coming from the community, they can say ‘hey I used this food pantry before’ or ‘hey I’ve been to Job and Family Services, I know they will take care of you, just like they took care of me.’ So this will be a very personal and trusting relationship that the Community Health Worker will have, and some people have even gone through these issues before,” explained Jasper.

The program lasts only one semester and includes both time spent working out in the community as well as in the classroom. The Health Resources and Services Administration is responsible for a $1.8 million grant that will completely cover tuition for students. Students will also have other costs of education covered for them such as a new laptop or childcare costs. 

Jasper explained the importance of covering those expenses, saying, “It’s really difficult to be a working individual and have children or other people that you have to take care of and really balance that, so we want to do our best to help alleviate that off the students.”

Jasper also noted the reasoning behind the specific call for students from West Dayton and Trotwood communities by saying, “There was a Community Health Needs Assessment that was done in 2021, that was done by GDAHA, the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association and the Health Collaborative, which showed that economic stability was the biggest social determinant of health that had to do with an increase in health conditions in our area. Nationally, it’s access to care, but here in our area it’s economic stability. So that’s what we want to target.”

Sarah Hackenbracht also talked to WDTN about the Community Health Worker profession. She is the President and CEO of the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association’s Community Pathways Hub, which is an organization that employs a team of Community Health Workers.

She talked about the implementation of the position so far, saying, “It is still a relatively new model for the community to know and understand. And we are exceptionally proud of our community agencies that have been interested and excited to come to the table and find ways to embed community health workers into the services they provide.”

The first cohort of Kettering College’s Community Health Worker Certificate program will start in August 2023. Those interested in more information or applying to the program can learn more at Kettering’s webpage for the program.

More information about Kettering College and the other programs it offers can be found at the school’s website.