A new program connects Hennepin Health members who are 18 years or older and have a substance use disorder (SUD) -- and an emergency department (ED) or inpatient hospitalization for SUD -- to a certified peer support specialist (CPSS) who can help.
The CPSS can provide members with peer support counseling and connect them to basic needs and treatment and recovery services. The CPSS also has lived experience with SUD, which helps them bring insight and understanding to the process.
CPSS Albert Garcia’s life shapes his work
Albert Garcia, a CPSS who works with the Hennepin Health program, has lived through experiences that help him understand members’ challenges and point them in the right direction.
As a child, Albert was abused by others. At one point, “I was threatened by my abusers that if I said anything they’d kill me or my family,” he says. “That was like living in the pits of hell.”
He started drinking when he was seven to dull the pain.
Later, as an adult, Albert experienced mental health issues, was homeless for five years, and began taking drugs. “Using drugs was all I knew to take care of the feelings and emotions I had,” he says. “Trying to come out of addiction, you want it so bad. But every time you go to treatment, there are barriers and challenges that break you down. Sometimes, it’s like, ‘Why even try?’”
Helping people with similar struggles
At age 50, Albert got sober. A few years later, while working with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), someone told him about Minnesota’s certified peer support specialist program. “It clicked,” Albert says. “I lived through this already, so I can learn how to move forward and help others do the same.”
In his role with Hennepin Health, Albert receives a daily list of Hennepin Health members who are hospitalized at Hennepin Healthcare for substance use disorder. Then he goes to see them and introduces himself and his role. He offers to provide them peer support counseling and connect them to basic needs like a bus pass or treatment and recovery services.
“It’s giving them all the connections they are going to need to move forward instead of coming to the hospital for every incident,” Albert says. “I tell people I’ve been doing this my whole life because it’s my story. I lived through it. Now I have to go share it and share everything I’ve come across as resources.”
Peer support in action
In a normal week, Albert sees 25 to 40 Hennepin Health members. He can work with members for up to one year.
Success stories stick out. “One individual, I followed him through [the health system] for three months,” Albert says. “He wanted to apply for a job. I helped him write a resume and fill out a job application. He got the job. He was very proud of himself, and a few months later he got a promotion.”
In another case, “A young gentlemen kept coming into the ED,” says Albert. “He got an infection that went to his heart. He was doing drugs, drinking. He kept leaving the ED, but I talked him into staying. I said, ‘Take care of yourself or something bad is going to happen.’ He stayed, he got his infection taken care of, and he said, ‘I want to go to treatment. I’m ruining my heart. I need to do something different.’ I told him, ‘You’re the only one who can do that.’ It’s empowering people to make their own choices.”
“Because I’ve been down that road I know the challenges and barriers these individuals have,” Albert says. “And I want to free that up for them. I want to give them something to make life a little easier for them.”
Growth and recognition for the program
Over 1,000 Hennepin Health members have been screened for program services between July 2021 (when it started) and November 2023. Since then, the rate of emergency department visits for substance use disorder has decreased by one-third for Hennepin Health members in the program. And, overall, there’s been a significant decrease in 30-day hospital readmissions for substance use disorder complications among Hennepin Health members*. In 2023, the work won a Quality and Safety Improvement award from the Minnesota Hospital Association. Albert accepted the award on behalf on Hennepin Health and Hennepin Healthcare.
“This work means everything to me,” Albert says. “It means to never leave anybody behind or alone. I love what I do.”
Substance use disorder is treatable, and recovery is possible. Check out these Hennepin County resources:
If you are a provider, please visit information for mental health and substance use service providers.
*Thirty-day hospital readmissions for SUD complications have dropped from 16.87% in 2018 to 13.84% as of June 2023 in the Hennepin Health PMAP population.