Peer Support Services

Community Bridges Peer Support Services Program, created by our Clinical Director, John Hogeboom, and our Peer Support Supervisor, Johnny Casas, is staffed by recovering adults from the community, and our former patients who have successfully completed our Crisis, Detoxification, or Outpatient Programs and have maintained ongoing sobriety. 

 

Our Peer Support Program has grown since its inception in July, 2004 from 3 Peer Support Specialists to more than 25. 

 

This incredibly effective program gives each patient the opportunity to sit with a Peer and experience the level of understanding, direction, and promotion of Dignity that can only be shared by someone who has “been there”.

 

Community Bridges’ Peer Support Specialists are also out in the community working with the Phoenix Police Department on a regular basis.  Events such as the Connect to Care and the Hydration Project, give our Peer Support Specialists the opportunity to participate in community outreach while utilizing their Motivational Interviewing Skills to engage homeless individuals who have traditionally refused services. 

 

On July 12th and 13th, 2006 during the Phoenix Police Department’s Outreach and Hydration Event, Community Bridges’ Peer Support Specialists were able to engage 17 homeless individuals who were in danger of succumbing to heat stroke and heat exhaustion, provide water and nourishment to them and then transport them to our Detoxification Unit, while numerous others were offered assistance and subsequently placed at CASS. 

 

All of our Peer Support Specialists are trained in the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) and other Best Practice Modalities and are teamed with seasoned behavioral health workers.