Strategies for Integrating Community Health Workers into the Pharmacy

Health-related social needs (HRSNs) such as food insecurity, housing instability, and transportation barriers significantly impact health outcomes. Community pharmacies, with their accessibility and trusted relationships, are well positioned to integrate HRSN screening and referral services into patient care.

Community health workers (CHWs) are trusted members of their communities who live, work, and interact alongside the people they serve. Many pharmacy staff—pharmacists, technicians, clerks, and delivery drivers—share these same qualities, often working in the same neighborhoods for years. This connection makes pharmacies a natural fit for CHW integration.

Cross-training pharmacy staff as CHWs builds on their health care expertise while adding skills in effective communication, resource navigation, and referral coordination. Training typically includes two phases: formal CHW certification, often over several days, and ongoing training to address real-world challenges, share best practices, and adapt to emerging needs. Leadership support is also key, both at the pharmacy level and through broader networks.

According to a recent study, embedding CHWs within pharmacies improves patient engagement, increases referral uptake, and can achieve high resolution rates for identified social needs.¹ Programs have succeeded in both urban and rural settings, and cross-training CHWs within pharmacies has proven both effective and financially sustainable. Integrating HRSN programs into pharmacy workflows represents a viable and scalable approach, particularly with supportive policies and reimbursement mechanisms in place.

By equipping pharmacy teams to address HRSNs, community pharmacies can bridge the gap between clinical care and social support, ultimately improving health outcomes and strengthening the communities they serve.

Drug Topics® recently sat down with Christopher Daly, PharmD, MBA, BCACP, clinical associate professor at the University at Buffalo, and David Jacobs, PharmD, PhD, associate professor at the University at Buffalo, who were authors on the study, to discusshow community pharmacy staff can be effectively cross-trained as community health workers to support patients with unmet social needs.

READ MORE: Public Health Resource Center

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References

1. Daly CJ, Iqbal DN, Chen E, et al. Implementing a Community Health Worker Model to Address Health-Related Social Needs in a Community Pharmacy Network: A Pragmatic Evaluation. 2025. J Am Pharm Assoc. DOI:10.1016/j.japh.2025.102490