CHW Academy Pathway D

Working CHW Bridge

People already doing CHW work (outreach workers, navigators, peer, parish and lay health workers) who want the Ohio certificate and a career ladder.

Pathway handbook (Word)Ask about this pathway

Every pathway shares the same core. Graduates who meet Ohio's requirements apply for the Ohio CHW certificate. How the certificate works.

Step 1

Route check: which door is yours?

Ohio offers two ways around the training program. Everyone else completes the full bridge program. Work experience alone cannot replace the classroom and clinical hours.

Route	Who qualifies	What you do	Source
Grandfather	Employed in a role substantially the same as a CHW before February 1, 2005	Apply directly with an employer letter attesting to competence	ORC 4723.84
Endorsement	CHW license or government certification from another state held 1 year and practiced 1 of the last 5 years; private certification from a state without one held 2 years and practiced 2 of 5; or practiced 3 of the last 5 years in a state with no certification or in the uniformed services	Apply by endorsement; the issuer and employer send verifications directly to the Board	OAC 4723-26-03
Military credit	Military education or skills training	Joint Services Transcript reviewed; equivalent modules credited	OAC 4723-26-12(C)
Bridge program	Everyone else	Full core: 110 classroom, 12 lab, 130 clinical hours	OAC 4723-26-13

Step 2: the bridge program

Accelerated online classroom (12 weeks) with evening and weekend live sessions.
Job-embedded practicum: your 130 clinical hours may happen at your own workplace when it is a community setting, a site agreement is signed, and a qualified supervisor signs your log and checklist. Only hours doing CHW tasks across the lifespan count.
Learn and earn: we ask employers to give paid time for live sessions and labs.

Step 3: keep moving on the pathway

Renewal: 15 contact hours each renewal period (1 on Board law and rules, 1 on boundaries). The first renewal is exempt.
Specialties: violence interruption and credible messenger (Pathway B courses); future maternal and child health, chronic disease, and behavioral health navigation.
College: articulation with Tri-C and Cleveland State toward health, human services, and public health degrees.
Leadership: site supervisor, peer mentor, and instructor roles.

Modules in order

What you study, start to finish

Lesson pages open in the learning portal.

Module	Course	Title	Hours
ORIENT.1	ORIENT	Welcome to the CHW Academy	orientation
ORIENT.D	ORIENT	The Working CHW Bridge	orientation
190.1	CHW 190	Practicum Orientation	orientation
101.1	CHW 101	Who We Are: The Community Health Worker	4 class
101.2	CHW 101	Ethics, Boundaries and Confidentiality	4 class
101.3	CHW 101	Upstream: The Social Determinants of Health	4 class
101.4	CHW 101	The Political Determinants of Health	4 class
101.5	CHW 101	Assets and Community Assessment	4 class
101.6	CHW 101	Citizenship Health in Action: The IDEAS Cycle	4 class
102.1	CHW 102	Cultural Humility and Bias	4 class
102.2	CHW 102	Listening, Interviewing and Motivational Interviewing	4 class
102.3	CHW 102	Writing and Calling: Communicating with Providers	3 class
102.4	CHW 102	Teaching Groups and Facilitating Support Groups	3 class
102.5	CHW 102	Navigating Resources and Benefits	4 class
102.6	CHW 102	Safety in Families: Abuse, Neglect and Crisis	4 class
102.7	CHW 102	Advocacy and the Interdisciplinary Team	2 class
103.1	CHW 103	Body Basics: Anatomy, Physiology and Medical Terms	6 class
103.2	CHW 103	Vital Signs and Changes in Health Status	2 class + 4 lab
103.3	CHW 103	CPR and First Aid Skills	6 lab
103.4	CHW 103	Hypertension, Heart Disease and Stroke	3 class
103.5	CHW 103	Diabetes, Kidneys, Cancer Screening, Lungs and Asthma	4 class
103.6	CHW 103	Healthy Living I: Healthy Eating and Food Access	3 class
103.7	CHW 103	Healthy Living II: Physical Activity, Sleep and Stress	3 class
103.8	CHW 103	Tobacco, Alcohol and Drugs; Oral Health	3 class
103.9	CHW 103	Childbearing Years and Pregnancy	4 class
103.10	CHW 103	Newborns, Infants and Young Children	4 class
103.11	CHW 103	Adolescents	3 class
103.12	CHW 103	Adults and Seniors	3 class
103.13	CHW 103	Special Needs Populations	2 class
103.14	CHW 103	Safety and Injury Prevention Across the Lifespan	2 class
104.1	CHW 104	Care Coordination and Case Management	5 class
104.2	CHW 104	Documentation, Supervisor Review and Release of Info	3 class
104.3	CHW 104	Home Visits: Safety, Boundaries and Conflict	4 class + 2 lab
104.4	CHW 104	Office and Digital Skills	3 class
104.5	CHW 104	Self-Care and Sustaining the Work	2 class
104.6	CHW 104	Professionalism, Practicum and Career Pathways	3 class

Other pathways

Not the right fit? Try one of these

ACore Upstream CHW BViolence Interrupter and Credible Messenger CHW CJunior CHW (high school)ECollege Health Professions CHW