Community Health Worker Perspectives on Building Patient-Provider Trust in Rural Communities of the San Joaquin Valley, California: A Qualitative Study.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Patient-provider trust is essential for effective healthcare delivery, influencing care engagement, disclosure, and adherence. Mistrust can delay diagnoses, reduce care utilization, and worsen outcomes. While cultural competence trainings aim to improve provider awareness, few studies examine how community health workers (CHWs) perceive and support trust-building in clinical care.

Purpose

To explore strategies for building and maintaining patient-provider trust from the perspectives of CHWs.

Methods

Using a Community-Based Participatory Research approach, 39 CHWs from 3 rural-serving health centers in California participated in semi-structured focus groups. English and Spanish sessions were co-led by University researchers and trained CHW partners. Deduct

SUBMITTER: Sanchez KD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12926528 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan-Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature