“My job, at its core, is to be a relationship broker, meaning much of my time is spent listening and talking with our neighbors about the issues that are personal to them. By establishing deep connections with our most vulnerable community members we hope to establish trust. The trust that is necessary to connect our neighbors to needed resources and for us to have the ability to meaningfully advocate on their behalf. Not only do we often find ourselves with personal information like someone’s Medicare number or their birthday, but we also might know a person’s favorite food or song that could help placate them if they are ever in crisis, or know about their long-term goals to open up a pizza shop as they are deciding whether or not to continue their substance use rehabilitation journey.
The Community Navigation program has seen a lot of success. We’ve helped our neighbors obtain DC IDs, passports, birth certificates, & U.S. residency while also helping folks stay motivated to go to their doctor’s appointments and continue to meet with their housing case managers. We have helped folks with their retirement and found solutions so that they could afford rent, while also taking neighbors to detox and rehab. We have also been there for our neighbors when they need support, by riding in ambulances and helping them off the ground when they find themselves unable to stand on their own.
The challenges, though, are persistent. An individual’s journey through Substance Use Disorder can be complex and winding, we often see great progress – taking 3 steps forward, then for many different reasons, ending up taking 6 steps back. Our houseless neighbors sometimes have to wait 2 years in the system after, at times, experiencing homelessness for 10+ years. There is not nearly enough capacity at our Substance Use Disorder service providers in the city, with much of the time not having any available beds. There are many other great barriers for us to be of service to the members of our community but every day I look forward to doing our best to help connect our neighbors to the resources they need.”
-Alejandro, Ward 1 Community Navigator