Bellingham - Peer Support Specialist

Summary

As a Peer Support Specialist within our organization, you will play a vital role in providing support, guidance, and advocacy to individuals receiving behavioral health services. Drawing from your own lived experience with mental health or substance use challenges, you will empower and inspire others on their path to recovery. Your compassion, empathy, and ability to establish rapport will foster a supportive environment conducive to healing and growth.

• Provide peer support and mentorship to individuals receiving behavioral health services, promoting self-determination and recovery-oriented goals.
• Utilize your own lived experience to empathize, validate, and connect with individuals navigating mental health or substance use challenges.
• Foster a supportive and non-judgmental environment where individuals feel safe to share their experiences and explore their recovery journey.
• Assist individuals in developing coping skills, problem-solving techniques, and strategies for managing symptoms and achieving personal goals.
• Advocate for the rights and preferences of individuals receiving services, ensuring their voices are heard and respected within the treatment process.
• Collaborate with clinical staff and other members of the treatment team to coordinate care and support the overall well-being of individuals served.
• Facilitate peer-led support groups, workshops, and educational sessions to enhance community engagement and promote recovery-oriented practices.
• Maintain appropriate documentation of peer support activities and interactions, including assessments, treatment plans, and progressive notes adhering to confidentiality and privacy regulations.
• Ensure compliance with all state, federal, and local regulations governing peer support services.
• Adhere to all applicable company policies, practices, and procedures to maintain compliance with organizational standards.
• Stay up-to-date with any required training, certifications, or continuing education requirements relevant to the role, compliance requirements, and regulatory standards.
• Adhere to mandatory reporting standards, and company compliance requirements including but not limited to actively participating in investigations, audits, and monitoring activities as required.
• Perform additional tasks, duties, and assignments as specified by your supervisor.

• Empathy and Compassion:
  Ability to empathize with others' experiences, demonstrate compassion, and offer support without judgment.
• Active Listening:
  Skill in actively listening to individuals' concerns, validating their experiences, and offering constructive feedback and encouragement.
• Peer Support
  
  Skills:
  
  Proficiency in providing peer support services, including mentoring, advocacy, and facilitating mutual aid.
• Boundaries and Ethics:
  Understanding of professional boundaries, ethical guidelines, and confidentiality principles in peer support practice.
• Communication
  
  Skills:
  
  Effective verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to articulate ideas clearly and engage individuals in meaningful dialogue.
• Cultural Competence:
  Sensitivity to cultural, ethnic, and diversity issues, with a commitment to providing culturally responsive and inclusive support.
• Collaboration:
  
  Ability to work collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams at contracted facilities and community partners to optimize patient outcomes.
• Use of Technology:
  Proficient in the use of a PC; in a Windows environment; in the use of the Internet; and in the use of MS Office Applications such as Outlook, Word, and Excel. Proficient in the use of EHR software systems, preferably Athena One.

• Travel to the assigned nursing facility is required for this position.

• An individual must be able to perform the essential functions satisfactorily with or without reasonable accommodations.
• Must have personal experience with mental health and/or substance use challenges and be willing to disclose this experience as part of the job application process.
• Adherence to applicable policies and procedures at contracted facilities, including infection control protocols and safety guidelines.
• Tuberculosis (TB) screening with documented results, completed within the last 12 months.
• Up-to-date COVID-19 vaccination, if required by contracted nursing facility.
• Must have reliable transportation to travel to and from assigned nursing facilities.

• High school diploma or equivalent required.
• Completion of a peer support specialist training program.
• Minimum of 1 year of experience providing peer support services in a behavioral health or related setting preferred.

• Certification as a Peer Support Specialist is required.

• This position requires BHS-branded scrubs to be worn at all times when working in or visiting a nursing facility.

This job operates primarily within the nursing facility setting at contracted facilities, with occasional administrative duties performed in an…