IHS Announces national expansion of Community Health Aide Program

The Indian Health Service announced the national expansion of the Community Health Aide Program. The program provides education and training of tribal community health providers to increase access to quality health care, health promotion and disease prevention services.  As an expansion of the Alaska Community Health Aide Program, the national CHAP will be consistent with the Alaska model and will foster innovative service delivery for the IHS by augmenting the existing workforce with mid-level paraprofessionals, utilizing culturally competent providers, and providing workforce development opportunities for locally developed staff. The policy may be accessed through the Indian Health Manual under Circular 20-06. For more background on the CHAP expansion, visit https://www.ihs.gov/chap/.