Americorps

AmeriCorps is a national service programs funded by the Corporation for National Community Service. The program provides year long full-time “members” to service programs around the country, including hundreds of faith-based and community organizations, higher education institutions, and public agencies.  The purpose of these programs is to meet out country’s most critical needs in education, public safety, health and the environment.

The National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC ®) launched Community HealthCorps in 1995 to bring these national service resources to community health centers, primary care associations and clinic consortia that provide primary health care to residents of medically underserved areas.

The CHCANYS Community HealthCorps is a partnership of NACHC, the Corporation for National Service, and Community Health Centers located across New York State. The mission of CHCANYS Community HealthCorps is to increase health care access and enhance workforce development through community health center sponsored HealthCorps programs. The goal of Community HealthCorps is to increase access and eliminate health disparities for the medically underserved though long-lasting sustainable projects.

HealthCorps members meet these goals through outreach to individuals with no regular primary care provider to increase access to health care; they provide health education on the importance of primary and preventative health, and they generate volunteers to support and expand community health center service capacity.

Community HealthCorps

CHCANYS Community HealthCorps (CCHC) members improve and expand the delivery of existing community health centers services. CCHC members perform direct service with patients thereby filling service gaps, increasing access to and improving utilization of health center’s services.

The mission of CHCANYS Community HealthCorps is to assure the provision of culturally appropriate preventive and primary health care to medically underserved populations and communities.  Health centers diagnose and treat budding health problems early, prevent unnecessary utilization of hospital emergency rooms and inpatient beds, and help cut health care costs.

CHCANYS Community HealthCorps team consists of 20+ members working full time in a Community Health Center in New York State. Each member works on a specific service project that reflect the needs of their health center, the objectives of CHCANYS Community HealthCorps and the member’s interests.

In this section of the website you will learn about the service HealthCorps members provide to the community and HealthCorps members.

Service to the Community

Community HealthCorps members serve in racially and culturally diverse rural and urban areas, meeting the needs of migrant farm workers, the uninsured and underinsured, and homeless individuals. Community HealthCorps members make a difference by:

• Increasing Access: Community HealthCorps members refer medically underserved individuals and existing patients to health center programs and low-cost or free health insurance plans. Health center programs include the sliding scale fee program, school-based health clinics, related primary and preventive health care programs, and social service programs. Members directly enroll individuals, help them understand eligibility requirements, and show them how to complete necessary forms.
• Improving Utilization: Community HealthCorps members assist health center staff identify patients who need follow-up care assistance (e.g., reminder calls, making appointments, providing translations, linking to transportation) and other health and human services to meet treatment and care plans asset forth by clinicians resulting in decreased no-show rates, increased appropriate utilization due to translations and other site specific accomplishments.
• Providing Health Education: Community HealthCorps members assist health center staff by facilitating workshops; hosting health fairs; and conducting one-on-one and group health education sessions with community residents and patients on healthy lifestyles and / or preventive health topics resulting in individuals having an increase in their understanding and improved healthy lifestyles.
• Recruiting Volunteers: Community HealthCorps members assist health center staff to recruit, train, develop and manage volunteers who are identified to assist with health awareness campaigns, outreach, service events and other health center support activities.

Public Service Projects

In addition to the direct service members provide at the Community Health Centers and the training component of the program, members also perform special public service for their communities. During these public service projects members land a helping hand to community organization.

In the past members helped the South Bronx Community Health Center execute the largest Holiday Toy Drive and give away. Members volunteered their time by wrapping gifts that were going to be distributed to the health center patients.

In Crotona Park in the Bronx members helped to beautify the park. The CHCANYS Community HealthCorps team spent the day painting park benches, just in time for school vacation and summer.

The biggest public service event of the year happens during Community HealthCorps Week. This is a week long event where members select a day to plan for an implement a public service event with the goals of providing great services to the community and publicizing the national HealthCorps program and the services of their host site.