Supervising CHWs: Key Roles

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Formalized training programs to prepare supervisors to work with CHWs have only recently become available. This slide and the next two cover some of the important roles, skills, and methods supervisors of CHWs need.

CHW supervisors are usually responsible for communication with providers in other organizations, or even within their own organization, particularly on clinical matters. Supervisors are responsible for upholding their organization’s standards for the quality of services. They must negotiate quality assurance measures with CHWs and monitor the CHWs’ compliance, and they will usually be held accountable for errors made by CHWs. Supervisors also have an ongoing role in developing CHWs’ skills. CHWs are expected to build a respectful and empowering relationship with community members and to cultivate the community’s capacity to meet its own needs, and the supervisor is expected to serve as a role model by using such practices in her relationship with the CHWs themselves. Finally, some CHWs may have limited work experience, and supervisors must be able to introduce them into the world of work by reinforcing expectations such as professional appearance, promptness, and completion of agreements.