Communities & Health Professionals Together

Pediatric Director, CHPT: Albina Gogo, M.D.

The Communities & Health Professionals Together (CHPT, formerly Communities & Physicians Together) program was established in 1999 by the Department of Pediatrics and several grassroots community-based organizations, CHPT is a longitudinal and reciprocal training experience that creates a unique opportunity for pediatric residents to experience community-based child advocacy and community partnership building. 

Purpose of the CHPT program

•  Partners pediatric residents with grassroots, community-based organizations to focus on the social determinants of health

• Offers residents opportunities to develop skills in child advocacy and to integrate such advocacy skills into their role as a physician

The theoretical framework of CHPT hinges on McKnight & Kretzmann’s concept of "Asset-Based Community Development," or ABCD. This approach teaches us to engage in underserved communities by first identifying their assets and gifts, and partnering with communities to tackle locally-defined health issues.

In this unique experience, residents are assigned in teams to work with a grassroots, community-based organization, under the direction of a local leader or "CHPT Faculty". Residents learn to identify and mobilize community assets to create, implement and evaluate projects that enhance the health and well being of local children and families.

This experience is designed for residents interested in cultivating and refining skills in child advocacy, community building, community health, collaborative project planning, community-partnered research, and/or legislative advocacy. In addition, to the required 1 month Community Health and Advocacy rotation in their intern year, residents are offered the opportunity continue a longitudinal partnership with the partner organization throughout their residency, with additional 2-4 week rotations in their second and third years of residency. Each community partner provides a local leader who is specially trained as CHPT Faculty, and serves as a teacher and mentor for resident trainees.

The goals of the CHPT Pediatrics program are to:

• Educate pediatric residents to value child advocacy as an essential role of a pediatrician.

  

• Understand the community-health connection by learning the concepts of Social Determinants of Health, Patient-Centered Medical Home and Chronic Care Model
• Develop a well-defined, skills-based foundation in child advocacy among residents and community pediatricians
• Incorporate child advocacy into clinical practice both in residency and in practice
• Teach pediatric residents and community pediatricians to be effective Community Access to Child Health (CATCH) pediatricians by providing the fundamental skills and experiences for partnering with communities to address child health issues
• Form strong partnerships with local organizations to develop, implement, and evaluate community projects that address child health needs within a community
• Enhance the capacity of communities to improve the health of all children in their neighborhoods
• Learn and practice the basics of Legislative and Media Advocacy