Past Programs
Care Navigator Apprenticeship Pilot program
WERC, in partnership with L.A. Care’s Safety Net Initiatives (SNI) department, the Community Clinic Association of Los Angeles County (CCALAC), and Health Care LA-IPA (HCLA) created the Care Navigator Apprenticeship Pilot program (CNAP) to assist community-based clinics in improving care management and coordination of high-risk patients with complex medical, behavioral and social needs.
CNAP was designed to recruit authentic community representatives who have cultural affinity to the patient population they serve. Care Navigators were trained and coached over a period of one year including an initial intensive classroom training period, followed by on the job training to build their skills and competencies. This model of education and deployment is an apprenticeship model where workers learn in the classroom and through demonstrating competency on the job under the guidance of a mentor/preceptor. It is a registered Community Health Worker Apprenticeship Program with the California Division of Apprenticeship Standards and the United States DOL Office of Apprenticeship.
The program was made available through generous support from L.A. Care Health Plan, and The California Endowment.
Los Angeles Emergency Medical Technician apprenticeship
The Los Angeles Emergency Medical Technician (LA EMT) apprenticeship prepares young men and women of color from disadvantaged backgrounds to work as EMT’s within their own communities. The apprenticeship develops medical knowledge, technical skills, and professional standards in preparation for the national certification exam. WERC’s LA EMT program includes fulltime (40 hours per week) preparatory classroom and hands-on instruction taught by a Paramedic from the LA County Fire Department. Subsequent hands-on instruction includes medical equipment operation and role-playing of emergency scenarios.
Upon successfully passing the national certification exam, WERC currently places apprentices with McCormick Ambulance company serving LA County. Since the Fire Academy requires EMT credentialing for entry, WERC is also partnering with the LA County Fire Department to open a career pathway for former apprentices.
Patient Experience Workshops
WERC supported the transformation of the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services to a patient-centered model of health care delivery. Beginning with WERC’s interactive Patient Experience workshops, County employees were able to have a better understanding of the context for that transformation, and engage them in actively improving the experience patients have in their departments.
This interactive workshop was designed to equip frontline staff to recognize their important roles as members of multidisciplinary care teams in the clinics and healthcare centers. Through a series of activities, tools, and educational reinforcement strategies, workers learned about the basic elements of Health Care Reform and its impact on health providers in the future: especially about the importance of patient choice. Participants explored aspects of their own departments that are challenging for patients, and they gained skill, experience, and confidence in working together to identify and make changes in their personal work groups.
Community Health Worker
Community Health Workers (CHWs) can be a valued member of a medical team, acting as a health coach to patients who need extra support because they suffer from multiple health conditions. CHWs share a common culture with the patients: they come from the same community, speak the same language, and may have experienced some of the same issues that can affect health and wellness.
With support from The California Endowment, and in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (LAC-DHS), WERC partnered with trainers from several of the organizations at The Wellness Center in the Historic General Hospital and with Vision y Compromiso, the organization representing promotoras de salud, to provide a rich and diverse educational experience.
WERC’s first group of CHWs were the pioneers, bringing the cultural awareness of these “community professionals” onto the clinical teams as part of a demonstration is to improve the health of the complex and often most vulnerable patients, reduce unnecessary utilization of services and potential cost, and enhance both the patient and healthcare provider experience.
Nurse Practitioner Program
WERC, in partnership with the LA Department of Health Services (DHS) and Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, educated 20 experienced DHS Registered Nurses in the Family Nurse Practitioner curriculum of study through a grant from the US Department of Labor.
The Masters-level Nurse Practitioner program was developed to address both physician shortages and the need to improve the linkages from primary care to specialty care while improving quality and lowering costs by reducing unnecessary hospitalizations and re-admissions.
These nurse practitioners now have the knowledge and experience in a specialty care area to consult with specialists, manage chronic illnesses onsite, coordinate referrals when needed, and manage follow-up care. This is coupled with a continuing passion to work with medically underserved populations.
Environmental Service Workers - Seeing Green
Under an Energy Training Partnership Grant from the US Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration, WERC conducted a two-year training program for Environmental Service Workers (EVS / custodial) at LAC+USC, the flagship hospital of the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services. The program trained EVS workers to help make the hospital a more green and safe environment through recycling, waste reduction, energy efficiency, infection control and worker health and safety. The project also developed a college-level certification leading to a new green career ladder for EVS workers, and brought Labor and Management together for green systems change and job creation.
WERC has trained over 250 EVS workers, including 10 Green Peer Trainers who are equipped to share the education with new employees and with workers from other facilities. EVS workers – on the front-line of the patient care team – are now green champions!
Certified Medical Assistants (CMA)
Partnering with West LA Community College and Pasadena City College, WERC developed Medical Assistant programs that were accredited to national standards and offered at convenient times for working adults. When these two community college programs were launched, they were the only programs in the Los Angeles area with CAAHEP accreditation, which is widely recognized as the gold standard for the Medical Assisting profession and enabled graduates to sit for both state and national boards. WERC’s instructors also designed a pre-program skills assessment and “bridge” course, customized to the CMA curriculum, to help participants brush up on the specific math, English, computer, and reading comprehension skills needed to succeed in the program. Participants included Certified Nursing Attendants (CNA) from DHS, St. John’s Well Child and Family Center, and Kaiser Permanente.
Affordable Care Act Orientation
WERC provided an overview workshop of Health Care Reform to approximately 5,000 eligibility, clerical, and GAIN workers, who were on the frontlines of signing up newly eligible patients when the Affordable Care Act activated in 2013. During this time of transition, it was extremely important that LA County retained and increased the number of patients it served in DHS, DMH, and DPH. With an increased focus on providing exceptional customer service, these patients had incentive to stay with their County hospitals instead of transferring to the private sector.