Embedding the Cultural Health Navigator Model: A Health System–Integrated Approach for Refugee Care

Resettled refugees and culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) populations face persistent barriers to health care, including linguistic constraints, cultural disconnects, and limited availability of system-integrated approaches responsive to their needs. This article presents the Cultural Health Navigator (CHN) model, a health system-integrated community health worker (CHW) approach developed within an Arizona Medicaid-integrated public safety-net hospital system. The model embeds trained, multilingual CHNs within clinical workflows to provide culturally and linguistically responsive navigation, health education, care coordination, medical interpretation, and linkage to clinical and community resources. We apply the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) retrospectively to describe the model's implementation features and use the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework to guide prospective evaluation. The CHN model integrates CHW certification, clinical workflows, community partnerships, electronic health record infrastructure, and Medicaid reimbursement pathways to support implementation and sustainability. Preliminary evidence from the program supports continued evaluation of its potential contributions to patient navigation, trust, health literacy, health care utilization, and maternal and newborn health. We present the CHN model as a practice-based, potentially transferable implementation approach that health systems can adapt to strengthen culturally responsive care for refugees and other CALD populations. Future evaluation should establish its effectiveness, sustainability, and transferability across diverse health care settings.