About the Role
The Peer Specialist must understand and respect everyone’s unique path to recovery and must have lived experience of the mental health and/or drug and alcohol treatment system and a demonstrated commitment to the recovery community. The Peer Specialist’s role is to support others in recovery from mental health challenges. The Peer Specialist will serve as a role model, mentor, advocate, and motivator to recovering individuals to help promote long-term recovery. The Peer Specialist must demonstrate an ability to share personal recovery experiences and to develop authentic peer-to-peer relationships.
Duties and Functions:
1. Maintain logs, reports, and records in appropriate files and database(s).
2. Provide recovery education to program participants.
3. Provide a model for both people in recovery and staff by demonstrating that recovery is possible.
4. Assist recovering persons to identify their personal interests, goals, strengths, and weaknesses regarding recovery.
5. Assist/coach recovering persons develop their own plan for advancing their recovery; for “getting the life they want.”
6. Recovery Planning -- facilitate (via personal coaching) the transition from a professionally directed service plan to a self-directed Recovery Plan. The goal should be to transition from professionally assisted recovery initiation to personally directed, community supported recovery maintenance.
7. Promote self-advocacy by assisting recovering persons to have their voices fully heard; their needs, goals, and objectives established as the focal point of recovery.
8. Actively identify and support linkages to community resources (communities of recovery, educational, vocational, social, cultural, spiritual resources, mutual self- help groups, professional services, etc.) that support the recovering person’s goals and interests. This will involve a collaborative effort between the peers.
9. Support connections to community based, mutual self-help groups. Link individuals to appropriate professional resources when needed. Provide vision-driven hope and encouragement for opportunities at varying levels of involvement in community-based activities (e.g., work, school, relationships, physical activity, self-directed hobbies, etc.).
10. Identify barriers (internal and external) to full participation in community resources and develop strategies to overcome those barriers
PSAN provides services and employment opportunities without regard to race, color, national origin,
gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, religion, or any other legally protected classification.
Requirements
High school diploma/G.E.D.
Two (2) letters of recommendation
Must have worked within the last three (3) years with at least 12 months total of successful part-time or full-time paid or voluntary work experience
Acquired or met the qualifications for certification as a Certified Peer Specialist
Peer Support & Advocacy Network will pay for certification training
To Apply
Submit cover letter and resume to: psan@peer-support.org