What are the responsibilities and job description for the Peer Support Specialist position at Community Renewal Team?
Our Mission
“Preparing Our Community to Meet Life’s challenges.”
We help everyone who comes to our door with resources for both immediate needs and long-term goals.
Our network of programs, services, and experiences strengthen individuals, families, and communities and provides opportunities for growth and economic stability.
Come join our team!
When you become an employee at the Community Renewal Team (CRT), you will join a host of others with an average tenure of nine years of service. Some of our employees have celebrated more than twenty years of service. You’ll participate in fun activities, themed- employee appreciation events, organization sponsored golf tournaments, etc. We celebrate the accomplishments of employees using our Wall of Excellence highlighting employees of the month. Opportunities to grow within the organization are plentiful. Most of our employees started in entry level positions and have been promoted throughout their career.
BENEFITS
401K with a matching employer contribution, medical, dental, vision, HSA Spending Accounts, Life Insurance, Short-Term Disability (STD)/Long- Term Disability (LTD), and an Employee Assistance Program. Eligible employees are also able to participate in agency sponsored educational opportunities. Eligible employees receive ten paid vacation days, six sick paid days annually, and two personal days paid annually.
JOB DETAILS
POSITION TITLE: Peer Support Specialist
DEPARTMENT: Clinical Services
FLSA STATUS: Non-Exempt
GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES
The Peer Support Specialist’s role is to support others in recovery from a substance use disorder(s). The Specialist will serve as a role model, mentor, advocate, and motivator to recovering individuals to help prevent relapse and promote long-term recovery. The Specialist will provide non-clinical services intended to aid individuals in establishing and maintaining individual recovery from addiction. The recovery coach promotes a recovery based approach to member care with an emphasis on respect, self-direction, and empowerment by providing peer support, personal assistance, education on community resources, and other supportive services for individuals with a substance abuse disorder (SUD).
The specialist in this role will join the MAT team in outreach efforts within the community and help locate individuals that are lost to care. The Peer Support Specialist must demonstrate an ability to share personal recovery experiences and to develop authentic peer-to-peer relationships.
SPECIFIC DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS
The list of essential functions, as outlined herein, is intended to be representative of the tasks performed within this classification. It is not necessarily descriptive of any one position in the class. The omission of an essential function does not preclude management from assigning duties not listed herein if such functions are a logical assignment to the position.
- Maintain project logs, reports and records in appropriate files and database(s).
- Provide and assist with immediate interventions as it pertains to an individual’s recovery using harm reduction and recovery based methods.
- Provide recovery based education to service recipients for every phase of the recovery journey from pre-recovery engagement, recovery initiation, recovery stabilization, and sustained recovery maintenance for individuals with substance use disorders.
- Demonstrates positive beliefs and feelings regarding clients with varying levels of needs as it pertains to the individual’s recovery.
- Collects client data needed for GPRA interviews and conducts follow up surveys as a requirement from SAMSHA.
- Provides clients with ongoing education regarding substance abuse, mental health, HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis C, tobacco, nutrition and exercise and other health and wellness information.
- Effective written and verbal communication, including ability to communicate in a professional manner.
- Ensure emergency basic needs are addressed immediately (i.e. food, temporary housing, transportation, clothing, etc.) that would put the individuals recovery in jeopardy.
- Make follow-up calls after all referrals are made.
- Ability to facilitate recovery support groups as needed and addiction education groups.
- Assist/coach recovering persons develop their own plan for advancing their recovery.
- 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 including the recovering person, agency staff and other relevant stakeholders.
- 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.) and develop relationships with community groups/agencies in partnership with others in the agency.
- Visit community resources with recovering persons to assist in becoming familiar with potential opportunities.
- Maintain contact by phone and/or e-mail with recovering person after they leave the program to ensure their ongoing success and to provide re-engagement support in partnership with others in the agency if needed to promote the individuals recovery journey.
- Other duties as directed by Director and/or Program Staff.
ADDITIONAL JOB FUNCTIONS
- Develop, implement, and promote ongoing community outreach and client-centered recovery coaching.
MINIMUM TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE
Education: High school diploma/G.E.D. Required
Minimum Years of Experience in Must have worked within the last three years with at least 12 months total of paid employment in the recovery field or have recovery related voluntary work experience.
Active Certification in good Standing: Must have acquired or meet the qualifications for the certification as a Recovery Coach or Recovery Support Specialist
Bilingual: Yes - Language preferred: Spanish
Driving Required: YES Agency Vehicle YES Employee’s Own Vehicle YES
Active Driver License in good standing required upon hire and throughout employment
Physical and TB Required YES , prior to appointment
ADA COMPLIANCE
Physical Ability: Tasks involve sedentary to light work, involving some reaching, handling, fingering and/or feeling of objects and materials.
Sensory Requirements: Some tasks require visual perception and discrimination. Some tasks require oral communications ability.
Environmental Factors: Tasks are regularly performed with exposure to adverse environmental conditions, such as dirt, dust, pollen, odors, wetness, humidity, rain, fumes, temperature and noise extremes, machinery, vibrations, electric currents, traffic hazards, animals/wildlife, toxic/poisonous agents, violence, disease, or pathogenic substances.
