As she prepares to graduate soon with a master’s degree in social work from WashU Brown School, Isla Frazier says her practicum experience in a hospital-based harm reduction program has helped her translate research into clinical practice.
Frazier was recently named the 2026 recipient of the Tasch-Kopolow Scholarship from PreventEd, an honor recognizing her commitment to achieving excellence in a professional career serving the substance use field.
During her Master of Social Work program, Frazier completed her first practicum at the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri. She is now finishing her second placement with the Injection Drug Use Bridge to Health Program at the WashU School of Medicine’s Division of Infectious Diseases, a hospital-based harm reduction initiative serving patients who inject drugs and are hospitalized with related infections.
The program connects patients with inpatient health coaches, mental health services, clinical case management, transportation and medication assistance, as well as care coordination after discharge. Many patients require weeks of intravenous antibiotics, making extended hospital stays the safest option. Still, some leave early complicating continuity of care.
Frazier primarily works as a health coach, helping improve treatment access for patients with substance use disorder and infectious diseases. Her role includes bedside support, coordination with medical teams and harm reduction education focused on risk reduction rather than judgment.
“We’re not here to tell patients they need to stop using and stop injecting and get into rehab,” she says. “We meet them where they’re at.”
Raised in Argentina and Ecuador before moving to Michigan as a teenager, Frazier initially considered a career in psychology. She ultimately gravitated toward social work for its combination of clinical practice and social justice.
“I can still do therapy and clinical work while incorporating social justice and having that social justice framework,” she says.
Frazier says she was drawn to the Brown School for its faculty strengths in sexual health and education. She discovered the Bridge to Health program while searching for a practicum focused on HIV care, which aligned with her interest in sexual health.
“There’s a high correlation between injection drug use and HIV just because of the nature of using syringes and blood exchange,” she says. “So, I reached out on a whim, like, ‘Hey, wondering would you ever be interested in a practicum student?’”
She became the program’s first practicum student, entering a setting that challenged her assumptions about substance use and deepened her empathy.
“I was worried coming into the program — I had my own stigmas related to substance use,” she says. “But I’ve surprised myself in how much I’ve grown, and I feel really honored to work with this population.”
One moment has stayed with her: a client who struggled to arrange transportation to her appointments eventually learned to schedule rides independently after months of coaching.
“I could cry even thinking about it,” Frazier says. “It sounds so small, but it was huge. She was crying and she was so proud. She said, ‘I did it and you believed in me.’”
Alongside direct patient work, Frazier has helped develop internal tools, including a harm reduction curriculum and documentation templates integrated into the hospital’s electronic health record system. She also created resource guides for Illinois and Missouri, outlining harm reduction services and mental health supports.
“My work bridges research and practice while making sure that what we learn from patients strengthens future research and clinical systems,” she says.
Tracey Habrock-Bach, the clinical program manager, says Frazier made valuable contributions to the program and showed both faculty and staff what meaningful student engagement can look like.
“As the Bridge to Health’s first practicum student, Isla brought a rare combination of curiosity, initiative, and deeply rooted compassion. She began this practicum without a pre‑defined structure which required independence and creativity. Isla met those challenges with empathy and a genuine commitment to understanding the lived experiences and daily struggles of the people we serve,” Habrock-Bach says.
She adds that Frazier’s work has set a high standard for future practicum students and helped shape expectations for future placements.
“Her ability to listen without judgment, build trust, and approach each interaction with empathy helped model the relational, harm‑reduction‑centered approach the program strives for. Isla’s presence reminded us that compassion is not just a value but a practice, but rather one that strengthens both client engagement and team culture.”
Frazier also contributes to Institutional Review Board-approved research, supporting implementation efforts to improve linkage to care for sexually transmitted infections and assisting with research related to xylazine-related wounds.
Looking ahead, Isla hopes to continue working in hospital or community-based settings using a harm reduction framework, with a developing interest in one-on-one therapeutic work at the intersection of PTSD and substance use.
“Whatever I’m doing, in the moment, I’m able to love and learn and grow from,” she says. “So that makes it a little hard to plan for the future, but it also gives me comfort because I feel secure that I will be able to carve my way in whatever I’m doing.”
Frazier will be among several award recipients honored at the 2026 PreventEd Spring Awards Luncheon on Friday, April 24.