April 2024

Dear Maine CHWs and Allies, 

Happy Spring!

April is now here and so is the MECHW Summit on April 23rd! We are very excited to share this full day with you. We will have very well-known CHW advocates traveling to Maine to celebrate with us as well as Dr. Va from the Maine CDC. Please see the agenda below for a full list of events.

-MECHW Initiative Advisory Commitee

MECHWI advisors and staff have created 3 committees to advance the work in the initiative's general strategic plan. Committees have invited new members into the committees who have shown interest in those areas. See below for the updates on the exciting work that is being done!

The committees have launched!

Interested participants that signed up for a committee have receive an email with meeting details and will start the important work on behalf of the Initiative.

Workforce Development Committee (WDC)

The committee has been diving deep into the objectives of CHW certification, resource sharing, as well as building a CHW Tool Kit. Please see the website for some of these updates. The WDC meets every other Friday, next meeting April 12th.

Policy/Advocacy Committee (PAC)

The Policy & Advocacy Committee (PAC) welcomed 8 new members, who joined the group in February. The PAC meets the second and fourth Wednesday of the month from 12:45-1:30pm. The Advisers and members have contributed to creating a charter which outlines the purpose, processes, and goals of the PAC. The PAC is now working to develop an action plan to advance its strategic objectives, which include:

Develop recommendations for infrastructure that supports and sustains the CHW profession, identify key partners, allies and contributors and identify 3-5 advocacy objectives for 2025-2026.

Communications/Outreach Committee 

This committee meets monthly and is currently working on identifying member's strengths and social media platforms that can benefit the communications of MECHWI. They completed their first objective of finalizing the Maine CHW definition, which has been shared with the state.

If you are interested in joining a committee, email Bridgette Gemelli, Capacity Building Coordinator at bgemelli@mcd.org.

CHW Annual Summit

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Lisa Renée Holderby-Fox

Director of CHW Leadership Development at the Center for Community Health Alignment (CCHA) and Co-Director of the Envision Training and Technical Assistance Center

Lisa Renee is a proud member of the CHW workforce with over 30 years of experience. She’s spent the past 25 years working to ensure CHWs are valued and respected members of the public health workforce. Her passions include nurturing CHW leadership and policy development to support the workforce. Lisa Renee is a co-founder of several CHW organizations including the National Association of Community Health Workers, the New England CHW Coalition and the Southeast CHW Network.

CHW Employer Opportunity

Become a CHW Apprenticeship Site!

As an employer, you can partner with MCD Global Health to help grow the community and public health workforce in Maine.

As a registered CHW apprenticeship site in Maine, you'll have many benefits, including:

• All apprentice training costs covered.

• Full access to comprehensive training resources.

• Employee mentorships.

• An upskilled workforce.

• Expanded and improved services to populations.

For more information, contact Apprenticeship Coordinator, Makara Pollard at mpollard@mcd.org

What is self-care? Self-care means taking the time to do things that help you live well and improve both your physical, health, and mental health. When it comes to your mental health, self-care can help you manage stress, lower your risk of illness, and increase your energy. Even small acts of self-care in your daily life can have a big impact. 

For more information, contact us at: info@mechw.org