Community Health Worker

About the role

Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital seeks a Community Health Worker for their CH Population Health department. This grant-funded role provides culturally appropriate health education, resource navigation, referral, support, and care coordination for Cottage Health patients and vulnerable populations in the community. Responsibilities include supporting patients through the discharge process, facilitating connection to social needs, referral, patient goal setting, and follow-up care post-discharge.

Lived experience and an understanding of the local community challenges with the populations being served is essential. This position reports to the Manager of Community and Parish Nursing and works closely with various departments at Cottage Health.

Responsibilities

• Assist with navigation of care and recommendations for follow-up.
• Complete basic health education and social needs assessments.
• Provide patient referral and follow-up.
• Complete digital documentation.
• Facilitate verbal and written communication for patients and their caregivers.

Requirements

• Valid California driver’s license, reliable transportation, and insurance coverage as required by California state law.
• Cultural competency and knowledge of targeted Hispanic/Latinx communities and lower-income communities in Santa Barbara County.
• Bilingual in Spanish and English.
• Ability to write, read, and speak in English for patient documentation.
• Ability to type and navigate on a computer.
• Lived experience with chronic conditions, vulnerable populations, navigating MediCal/CenCal coverage, and/or accessing services in a hospital system.

Qualifications

• Education: Preferred: Completed Community Health Worker or Promotor/a training or certificate.
• Certifications, Licenses, Registrations: Preferred: CHW, Promotora/a, or medical assistant certification.
• Years of Related Work Experience: Preferred: One year of experience working in a community health or related service, including volunteer or internship positions in a community setting.

About Us

Cottage Health is a leading acute care hospital system located on the central coast of California, widely known for superior patient care, innovation, medical research, and education. Our health system operates primarily in Santa Barbara, CA, and consists of three acute care hospitals, a Rehabilitation Hospital, multiple clinics, and a multi-site Urgent Care system. Founded in 1888, our mission is to serve the central coast communities with excellence, integrity, and compassion.