Oklahoma City-County Health Department (OCCHD) has developed a robust workforce and capacity to focus initiatives on communities facing inequities through grant programs over the past year. However, these grant funds have a short lifespan, to continue service provision through a trained competent Community Health Worker (CHW) workforce OCCHD will continue and expand utilization through strong community partner collaborations. This project seeks to sustain the CHW workforce to make tangible gains on health outcomes. OCCHD will continue to fund approximately twenty CHW positions and associated leadership that will be reduced without this additional funding. Relevant and necessary work performed by these personnel are directed in communities within the jurisdiction, as specific as zip code level, who historically and continually have low health outcomes and numerous social determinants of health. Continuation of these activities will afford the ability to have trained competent individuals who have lived experience. In addition to CHWs, OCCHD has identified there is a significant training, capacity, and competence gap between existing staff and core competency benchmarks identified by the Council on Linkages and Public Health Practice. OCCHD will update Workforce Development Plan and provide emphasis on training and competency building for all levels of staff from front line workers through executive leadership. This training will have a focus on professional development, performance management, quality improvement, health equity and diversity, and leadership foundations. Training will enhance the capacity of OCCHD to effectively work through strategic planning initiatives, conduct Local Public Health Assessments, and a Community Health Improvement Plan.
