RWJBarnabas Health, a 14-hospital system based in West Orange, N.J., said Oct. 9 it is widening its community health worker program across its enterprise.
The program launched in 2023 to improve health outcomes while reducing barriers to care and hospital admissions. Since then, more than 100,000 patients have benefited from RWJBarnabas’ community health worker program, according to an Oct. 9 news release.
The system employs more than 70 community health workers — who are embedded in hospitals, federally qualified health centers, and homeless and community centers — to assist patients with health and social needs.
RWJBarnabas has provided more than 116,000 rides for patients, the release said. Additionally, the system’s community health workers have referred nearly 31,000 patients to community-based resources, scheduled more than 11,400 physician appointments and helped about 3,200 patients enroll in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
