[RANDY]: I am from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
I do have a bad back primarily resulting as working
as a printer for about 25 years.
So, I'm living with a lot of chronic pain
and I was prescribed a lot of opiates and they created nothing
but destruction in my life.
It got to the point where I felt life was not worth living.
I had a lot of suicidal thoughts.
[JENNIFER THEDE]: I'm Jennifer Thede.
I'm a Behavioral Health Advocate with Optum.
I met Randy about a year ago when he was in the hospital.
He had a history of depression, anxiety, and he had issues
because pain medication continued
to be prescribed to him.
[ON PHONE] Do you have a few minutes to talk right now?
My role was to outreach to Randy and discuss
with him what treatment could work better.
[RANDY]: My caseworker, Jennifer, got me involved
in the suboxone program, of which I'm still on.
It's literally been a lifesaver for me.
Jennifer, she really cared, and it gave me a motivation
to continue on the right path,
so I started attending NOVA classes
and then I was going to acupuncture.
[JENNIFER THEDE]:
I have definitely seen in a change in Randy.
I do feel that my role is really
to give members everything they need and in doing so,
that does lead to a healthier life.
[RANDY]: Now, I feel tremendously better.
There's still a lot
of reconstruction being done in my life.
But, I've come a long way.
I feel a lot better.