Tracy Hedrick, community services director for Imperial Calcasieu Human Services Authority, and Glenna McKee, a substance‑use navigator with the LA Bridge Program, described the region’s Bridge model and its outcomes.

Hedrick said the local effort began after the coroner’s office raised alarm about rising overdose deaths and described the Bridge model’s three pillars: rapid evidence‑based treatment (notably ED access to buprenorphine), a culture of respect in care settings to reduce stigma, and connection to community treatment through substance‑use navigators. She said the navigators are peer‑support certified, embedded in emergency departments and perform tasks including bedside engagement, appointment scheduling, transportation coordination and linkage to MAT or harm‑reduction services.

Glenna McKee described day‑to‑day navigator work and read a patient message that credited a navigator for saving their life. The presentation included a written endorsement from Dr. John Gray, the hospital champion at Memorial Hospital in Lake Charles: "Our program has personally lifted me up to really enjoying the art of practicing medicine again," the excerpt read.

Hedrick reported tangible outcomes: the local Bridge team has linked more than 1,800 patients to navigators across four hospital systems (five hospital sites), with more than 70 percent of those connected to an appropriate level of care. She said buprenorphine prescribing from the ED is increasing, Narcan (naloxone) is offered to nearly all participants and that the program coordinates expedited appointments with local MAT providers to avoid medication gaps.

Ending: Hedrick and McKee asked the council to consider wider training and noted a Louisiana Bridge symposium and technical assistance available through the statewide Bridge program.