Strengthening Community Resilience Through Public Health Interventions in Vulnerable Communities in Cross River State: The Role of Social Workers

Abstract 
Nigeria continues to face major public health challenges despite numerous policy initiatives and reforms. These challenges are especially pronounced in rural and underserved communities, where access to quality healthcare remains limited. Cross River State reflects many of these national realities, despite strategic investments in healthcare, programmes in routine immunisation, malaria prevention, and maternal and child health, upgrades to Primary Healthcare Centres, and the transformation of several ageing infrastructure and facilities. These challenges weaken community capacity to plan, respond, and recover from public health emergencies. This paper assesses how public health interventions can strengthen community resilience in vulnerable communities in Cross River State, with an emphasis on social workers' role. Drawing on existing literature, the paper explores community resilience, public health interventions, vulnerability, and social work practice in the Nigerian context. The findings 
reveal that social workers contribute significantly to building community resilience through community mobilisation, health education, psychosocial support, advocacy, policy engagement, and intersectoral collaboration. The paper concludes that strengthening community resilience requires integrated, community-driven, and evidence-informed public health interventions that address the social determinants of health and improve access to essential healthcare services. Finally, it recommends stronger integration of social workers into primary healthcare teams, increased investment in community-based public health 
programmes, enhanced intersectoral collaboration, and policy reforms that prioritise vulnerable populations.