How to hire a community health navigator

How to hire a community health navigator, step by step

Here's a step-by-step community health navigator hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a community health navigator job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new community health navigator
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a community health navigator do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a community health navigator, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A community health navigator's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, community health navigators from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents community health navigator salaries for various positions.

   Type of Community Health Navigator	Description	Hourly rate
   Community Health Navigator	Health educators teach people about behaviors that promote wellness. They develop and implement strategies to improve the health of individuals and communities... Show more	$13-26
   Client Care Coordinator	A client care coordinator is a health care professional who arranges and coordinates services for patients, ensuring they receive optimal care. They usually meet with patients to identify their health care needs, develop personalized care plans, monitor the patients' conditions, and document their progress... Show more	$10-23
   Health Outreach Worker	Community health workers are health care professionals who are responsible for assisting individuals and communities in adopting health behaviors by outreaching health organizations to implement health programs. These health workers are required to provide basic health care services and perform basic diagnostic procedures such as screening of blood pressure, breast cancer, or communicable disease... Show more	$12-19

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Social Work
   • Mental Health
   • Community Health
   • Customer Service
   • Care Coordination
   • Health Education
   • Substance Abuse
   • Community Outreach
   • Phone Calls
   • Health Services
   • Health Outcomes
   • Primary Care
   • Community Events

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead process and counseling groups gear toward healing from both PTSD and substance dependence issues.
   • Utilize EpicCare EMR software to access patients' medical chart as needed according to HIPAA regulations.
   • Exhibit sensitivity and compassion to patients diagnose with breast cancer.
   • Update EMR with most recent information.
   • Coordinate other agencies across the country that assist veterans.
   • Assist to design and implement center-wide mammography tracking process in EMR.

   More community health navigator duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your community health navigator job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A community health navigator salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a community health navigator in Alabama may be lower than in Nevada, and an entry-level community health navigator usually earns less than a senior-level community health navigator. Additionally, a community health navigator with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average community health navigator salary

   $40,561yearly

   $19.50 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level community health navigator salary

   $29,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 11, 2026

   Average community health navigator salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$56,725	$27
   2	District of Columbia	$48,934	$24
   3	Oregon	$46,990	$23
   4	Washington	$46,164	$22
   5	New Jersey	$45,990	$22
   6	North Carolina	$45,380	$22
   7	New Mexico	$45,266	$22
   8	Massachusetts	$44,714	$22
   9	Minnesota	$43,398	$21
   10	Pennsylvania	$41,745	$20
   11	Colorado	$41,088	$20
   12	Illinois	$41,087	$20
   13	Texas	$40,662	$20
   14	Wisconsin	$40,323	$19
   15	Louisiana	$39,118	$19
   16	Kansas	$38,972	$19
   17	Tennessee	$38,423	$18
   18	Ohio	$37,979	$18
   19	Georgia	$37,811	$18
   20	Virginia	$37,469	$18

   Average community health navigator salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Pioneers Memorial Healthcare District	$57,104	$27.45
   2	Cook Children's Medical Center	$53,478	$25.71	3
   3	University of California-Berkeley	$51,233	$24.63
   4	TALENT Software Services	$51,054	$24.55
   5	Parkland Hospital	$50,597	$24.33	1
   6	Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid	$50,415	$24.24
   7	North Shore Community College	$49,262	$23.68
   8	Queens Health Systems	$49,259	$23.68	1
   9	Georgetown University	$48,673	$23.40	4
   10	Central Lakes College	$48,544	$23.34
   11	Boston Medical Center	$47,588	$22.88	12
   12	Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center	$47,188	$22.69
   13	DESC	$46,400	$22.31
   14	UMiami Health System	$45,992	$22.11
   15	Casa de Maryland	$45,848	$22.04
   16	Maxim Healthcare Group	$45,791	$22.01	58
   17	National Medical Association	$45,638	$21.94
   18	Telecare	$45,334	$21.80	161
   19	Santa Fe Public Schools	$44,975	$21.62	3
   20	VIVA USA	$44,898	$21.59

4. Writing a community health navigator job description

   A community health navigator job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a community health navigator job description:

   Community health navigator job description example

   CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Health System is about people. People we meet and care for; people whose lives we enhance, and those whose lives we save. CHRISTUS is about the people who work here: our award-winning medical staff, dedicated housekeeping staff, compassionate nurses and patient-focused ancillary staff. We're about people who need us, from small bumps to massive trauma, no matter their economic bracket. We're about the people of San Antonio, New Braunfels, and all the South Texas communities we serve. Since 1869, CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Health System has grown and flourished just as South Texas has grown. We remain the only Catholic faith-based, non-profit health care system in San Antonio and New Braunfels. Our healing ministry now includes five full-service hospitals with 1,159 licensed beds, and a number of specialty centers.
   
   If you are looking to join a rapidly growing faith-based organization that encourages professional development, we want you to become a part of the CHRISTUS Santa Rosa family!
   
   Provides underserved patients and their families with culturally appropriate non-clinical support and information in the emergency department and primary care clinics. Navigates patients and families to health and social services in the community and coordinates community-based care referrals. Emphasizes the importance of a medical home and proper utilization of the emergency department and outpatient clinics.
   Requirements: · High School Diploma or GED required
   · Associate Degree or completion of a certified Community Health Worker training program preferred
   · Previous experience with healthcare provider or community-based organizations
   · Computer literacy
   · Crisis Prevention Intervention (CPI) training preferred
   · Significant experience and knowledge of medical service delivery and community-based health and social services
   · Knowledge of the uninsured and underserved populations in area
   · Cultural Competence/Humility
   · The skill and knowledge competencies identified in the National Community Health Advisor Study, in June 1998, for Community Health Workers. These include communication skills, capacity-building skills, interpersonal skills, service coordination skills, advocacy skills, teaching skills, organizational skills, and broad knowledge about community health issues and social services.
   · BLS certification preferred Work Type: Full Time

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right community health navigator for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your community health navigator job on Zippia to find and recruit community health navigator candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting community health navigators requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new community health navigator

   Once you have selected a candidate for the community health navigator position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new community health navigator. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a community health navigator?