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The differences between health outreach workers and community support specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a health outreach worker, becoming a community support specialist takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a community support specialist has an average salary of $39,320, which is higher than the $32,129 average annual salary of a health outreach worker.
The top three skills for a health outreach worker include patients, community health and social work. The most important skills for a community support specialist are social work, mental health, and rehabilitation.
| Health Outreach Worker | Community Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $32,129 | $39,320 |
| Hourly rate | $15.45 | $18.90 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 85,592 | 111,431 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
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. They must also identify the particular health care needs of individuals in the community and as well as visit their homes to provide support or information. Community health workers must also arrange transportation to clients who have health appointments or referral sites.
A community support specialist is responsible for supporting and providing care services for citizens with mental health conditions and other medical illnesses. Community support specialists coordinate with organizations and health institutions to generate resources that would help the patients in their daily activities, medications, and treatment plans. They also strategize community events and activities to observe the patients' social and personal behaviors and endorse them to a mental health professional for in-depth examination and counseling.
Health outreach workers and community support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Health Outreach Worker | Community Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $32,129 | $39,320 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $40,000 | Between $27,000 And $56,000 |
| Highest paying City | Eureka, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | New Hampshire | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Insurance | Non Profits |
There are a few differences between a health outreach worker and a community support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Health Outreach Worker | Community Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | University of Southern California | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between health outreach workers' and community support specialists' demographics:
| Health Outreach Worker | Community Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 25.3% Female, 74.7% | Male, 28.8% Female, 71.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 22.1% Asian, 6.7% White, 51.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5% | Black or African American, 12.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 7.0% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 21% | 11% |