People First Radio – July 16, 2026People First Radio – July 16, 2026
People First Radio
Sharon Karsten, Christopher Hauschildt and Corey Cliff talk about the Walk With Me project, sharing how real-life stories of substance use are used to address stigma in hospital care. The conversation highlights harm reduction, peer support, and culture change efforts at Comox Valley and Campbell River hospitals during the ongoing toxic drug crisis.
0:00•16 Jul 2026
Stories, Stigma and Hospital Care: Walk With Me in the Comox Valley
Episode Overview
- Stigma in hospitals can be so severe that some people who use substances say they would rather die than seek care.
- The Walk With Me project gathers stories from people with lived and living experience and shares them with hospital staff through story walks and workshops.
- A six-month harm reduction intensive at Comox Valley Hospital brought around 300 staff into dialogue about stigma, care pathways, and practical service improvements.
- Peer support and cultural liaisons can make hospitals feel safer, building trust and easing tension for both patients and staff.
- Sensitivity and cultural training, alongside closer ties between hospitals and community organisations, are presented as key steps toward more humane, consistent care.
“The opposite of addiction is connection.”
What can we learn from those who have battled addiction? This episode of People First Radio centres on the voices of people who use substances and their experiences in hospital, with a strong focus on stigma and how it affects care. Vancouver Island University professor and community-engaged researcher Sharon Karsten and research fellow Christopher Hauschildt share how the Walk With Me project in the Comox Valley gathers first-hand stories about substance use and hospital care.
Those stories are then shared with hospital staff through "story walks" and workshops, aiming to shift everyday practice rather than just add another policy document to the pile. As Sharon puts it, the goal is to "normalize care for people who use substances" so they’re treated with the same routine compassion as anyone with cancer or diabetes.
Christopher brings both academic and lived experience, recalling people who say, "I would rather die than access the hospital" because of past judgement and labelling as "drug seeking". He describes how story walks helped staff rethink who uses substances, including men in the trades who "became really good at hiding it" to keep their jobs. That shift from stereotype to shared humanity is framed as a key part of culture change.
Later, Campbell River-based peer worker and storyteller Corey Cliff talks about how burnt-out staff and thin resources can feed harsh treatment, and why sensitivity training and peers inside hospitals matter. He highlights the Walk With Me stories as a way to "transport somebody into the shoes of the storyteller" and stresses that "the opposite of addiction is connection".
Peer roles, he says, can make hospitals feel safer for both patients and staff by adding a human bridge in a very clinical environment. If you’re curious about how story-sharing, peer support, and small cultural shifts might reduce harm in hospitals, this conversation gives plenty to think about—what kind of change would you like to see in your local services?
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