How a new Jefferson Health program helped this Pennsylvania man stay on track in his recovery journey
A new program in Philadelphia is helping substance abuse patients transition out of the the hospital and continue their recovery journey.
The early stages of substance recovery can be difficult. The program acts as a safe bridge between the hospital and helps patients stay sober.
Chris Soriano is a long way from when he was addicted to fentanyl.
"Took me everywhere it takes everybody — jails, rehabs," Soriano said.
Soriano was lost to opioids for almost two decades, until the last time he was hospitalized at Jefferson.
"Just from IV use, I had huge open sores on my legs," Soriano said.
During that hospitalization, Soriano was introduced to the Stephen and Sandra Sheller Consult Bridge Program.
With the bridge program, Soriano has access to a variety of services, including medications and counseling. He's been sober for 13 months.
"We're kind of a one-stop shop, whatever it takes model," Dr. Lara Carson Weinstein, the medical director of the Sheller Consult Bridge Program, said.
"We can start things in the hospital that are usually deferred until discharge, but for a lot of our folks by then its too late and they're lost to care," she added. "Because it's such a fragmented system for people with substance use disorders."
Soriano said the bridge program is keeping him healthy, and even helped with insurance.
"You can tell they care about each person," Soriano said. "I don't know what it is, but I keep coming back and this is the longest I've been sober."
Soriano is now back working and enjoying time with his family. He and his family recently moved into a five-bedroom house, and he's full of gratitude and committed to sobriety.
In addition to the full spectrum of health needs, the bridge program also helps with housing, legal assistance and food insecurity.
"I got my life back, I definitely did," Soriano said.
