PULSE Magazine | June/July 2019 Issue

going through with induction.

resources for HIV patients had been provided to get Kim and Sean an apartment. They were no longer homeless! At their most recent contact, Sean told Mike that he and Kim are still on methadone, and that Sean is now receiving treatment for his HIV. Because of the efforts of the Community Health Paramedic program, Kim and Sean’s options for better, healthier living were laid out for them. At the right time, they both got the help they needed.

Craig’s persistence paid off. One day, he offered Laura a ride to the clinic, and she said she was ready to go by herself. Laura went to the clinic weekly, of her own accord, to get her doses of suboxone. Eventually, she was out on parole. Laura went to west Texas, where she found herself struggling to get her weekly dosages, and in danger of relapsing. Craig quickly collaborated with the nurse practitioner from CommUnity Care, who had her prescription sent to her location in west Texas, where she had it filled and continued her treatment. Laura is clean, no longer bound by her old drug habit. She sends Craig a text now and then to assure him that she is doing well. More often than not, the initial CHP contact does not align with the client’s readiness to take the next steps toward wellness and sobriety. A client may acknowledge that they need help, but are not quite ready to do the work necessary to affect change. Mike Sasser experienced this with a couple that he met on Street Med, Kim and Sean. Sean had recently tested positive for HIV, and he and Kim were homeless and addicted to heroin. Kim was promptly tested for exposure to HIV. Mike and the Street Med team made multiple attempts to help Sean get connected to a clinic that could properly address his HIV. Appointments were made, courtesy rides offered, cab vouchers given, but Sean consistently missed his appoint- ments. Mike also took steps to connect both Kim and Sean to the MAT clinic so that they could start on suboxone treatment. Kim attended her induction, but did not feel that suboxone was the right treatment mode for her. Sean adopted her same views and decided not to attend induction, but wanted to seek methadone treatment. Sean overdosed on heroin during this time, which Mike addressed by issuing a Narcan kit and counseling Sean on its proper use. He urged Sean to get into methadone treatment if he was not open to suboxone. Ultimately, Mike ceased efforts to get Sean the help he needed. He remained available, but knew that Sean would decide when the time was right. With the help of partnering agencies, Kim and Sean both successfully got into methadone treat- ment in January and began to feel more functional. At the end of March, Sean contacted Mike to let him know they now had a place to live. City

Because of the efforts of the Community Health Paramedic program, our clients have options for better, healthier living.

Community Health medics are always reminding each other, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.” Stories like Laura’s, and like Kim and Sean’s, encourage the CHP’s to keep leading clients to the resources that will increase their quality of life.

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