Written by Elizabeth Cairns, Mobilize Recovery Special Projects, and reviewed by Code Recover Peer Advisors, August 2026

Peer recovery support specialist Christy Reser talks about what peers do in her program at Valley Hospital in Las Vegas.

The Power of Lived Experience

In the high-stress environment of the Emergency Department, patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) often feel judged, scared, and alone. As a peer recovery specialist (or substance use navigator), you bring a critical tool that no medication can offer: lived experience. You are living proof that recovery is possible. You have been through something similar to what they are experiencing now and can understand their position from the inside. Your primary role is to establish trust—something clinical staff often struggle to do—by validating the patient's feelings, normalizing their struggle, and reducing the stigma that often prevents honest communication. Because you are “on their side”, the patient is more likely to be honest with you and to share the challenges that are preventing them from making changes. 

Bridging the Gap

Your role is to serve as a cultural bridge between the hospital and the patient. While doctors and nurses focus on physiological stabilization (treating withdrawal, managing airways), your focus is on engagement and advocacy. This often involves helping the patient understand medical terms and, conversely, helping the clinical team understand the patient’s specific barriers to care, such as housing instability or fear of law enforcement. You are not there to diagnose or prescribe; you are there to help the patient feel safe enough to accept the treatment path that will work for them.

Improving Outcomes

Studies indicate that patients engaged by a peer are more likely to remain connected to treatment and community support after their ED visit. (source) By connecting a patient to community resources—such as ongoing treatment clinics, recovery centers, housing and other care coordinators—you help to transform a focused, short-term ED visit into a long-term recovery plan. Your presence changes the metric from "treated and released" to "engaged and supported."

Peer recovery support specialist Greg Jacobs talks about the importance of peers in rural communities where resources may be scarce.