Helping Patients With Needs That Extend Beyond Hospital Doors

In the video above, Antoine Langley, community health advocate at MedStar Harbor Hospital and Elizabeth Sebastiao, regional program coordinator, discuss the role of community health advocates in MedStar Health Baltimore hospitals.

Baltimore JOBS Workforce Program

Regina Heath is on her own. The 67-year-old says she doesn’t have the support of family or friends because they’ve all either moved or passed away—making it difficult for her to find someone to drive her back and forth from her many physician appointments.

Her circumstances changed when she was introduced to Antoine Langley.

“He sets up my appointments for me, calls an Uber for me, and lets me know what time they’re going to be here,” says Heath, a resident of Landsdowne and patient at MedStar Harbor Hospital. “Without Antoine, it would be impossible, because I don’t have anybody.”

Antoine is one of over 30 non-medical, entry-level associates who work with high-risk patients from vulnerable communities. The community health advocates and peer recovery coaches are based out of four hospitals—MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center, MedStar Good Samaritan Hospital, MedStar Harbor Hospital, and MedStar Union Memorial Hospital.

The positions are part of the Baltimore Jobs Workforce program and were created to help patients address critical social needs that negatively impact overall health—utility assistance, food, transportation, stable housing, and drug counseling. For example, Antoine’s job might include following up with patients to ensure medication is taken, scheduling transportation to appointments, assisting with registering patients for public benefits, or working one-on-one with patients during routine care following an illness, or managing a chronic condition, such as heart disease.

The program has been a success for patients, participants, and clinicians. The community health advocates live in the neighborhoods they serve, and are therefore able to connect with patients on a more personal level, says Regional Community Health Program Coordinator Elizabeth Sebastiao.

“They can say to the patients, ‘I’ve been in the same spot and I understand’,” Elizabeth says, adding that the program is helping to reduce hospital readmission rates. “Building that relationship of trust makes them feel comfortable opening up and expressing their challenges.”

Source: From July 2017 to June 2018 at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center, MedStar Good Samaritan Hospital, MedStar Harbor Hospital, and MedStar Union Memorial Hospital.

As for the workers themselves, the program has helped them gain confidence about their employment journey and has given them a highly rewarding career path. For community health advocate Antoine, this opportunity couldn’t have come soon enough.

“I had fallen on hard times. I was out of work, and no one wanted to hire me,” says Antoine, a single father caring for three children on his own. So when this second chance presented itself, he jumped at the opportunity to make a difference for himself and his community.

“This is my opportunity to spread knowledge that can help people get over their obstacles,” says Antoine, who went through a four-week training program that included courses on medical terminology, how to document notes, and how to conduct patient home visits. “The most rewarding thing for me is being able to help people in a real way every day.”