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The differences between health educators and community health workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a health educator and a community health worker. Additionally, a health educator has an average salary of $42,570, which is higher than the $37,079 average annual salary of a community health worker.
The top three skills for a health educator include public health, patients and community health. The most important skills for a community health worker are patients, community health, and social work.
| Health Educator | Community Health Worker | |
| Yearly salary | $42,570 | $37,079 |
| Hourly rate | $20.47 | $17.83 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 61,832 | 82,445 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A health educator is responsible for promoting a healthy lifestyle and wellness by developing programs and practices to improve an individual's physical, emotional, and mental condition, recommending a various approach to deal with stress and anxiety, and other situations affecting the clients' behaviors. Health educators record the clients' progress, educate them about healthy strategies and approaches, and coordinate with other health specialists and medical professionals on disseminating health information. A health educator must have excellent communication skills, especially during public speaking and seminars for health education programs.
A community health worker is a health professional who is a lay member of the community that provides health care in both urban and rural environments. Community health workers offer the health needs of the community they serve and provide some direct services such as first aid and blood pressure screening. They help people understand their health conditions and deliver health information by using appropriate cultural terms and concepts. Community health workers also make home visits to patients who are clinically ill, pregnant women, and individuals at high risk of health problems.
Health educators and community health workers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Health Educator | Community Health Worker | |
| Average salary | $42,570 | $37,079 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $58,000 | Between $27,000 And $49,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | The New York Foundling | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory |
| Best paying industry | Education | Insurance |
There are a few differences between a health educator and a community health worker in terms of educational background:
| Health Educator | Community Health Worker | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Most common major | Health Education | Psychology |
| Most common college | University of Florida | University of Southern California |
Here are the differences between health educators' and community health workers' demographics:
| Health Educator | Community Health Worker | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 22.6% Female, 77.4% | Male, 23.5% Female, 76.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 20.7% Asian, 6.8% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 22.8% Asian, 5.8% White, 54.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 21% | 21% |