Independence Center - Peer Support Specialist

BJC HealthCare • St. Louis, MO

1d • Onsite

About The Position

Independence Center (IC) is an internationally recognized, community-based behavioral health organization for adults in St Louis living with a mental illness. Our mission is to provide all the services and resources a person living with a serious and persistent mental illness needs, to manage their symptoms, find belonging and purpose, and gain the independence to live a healthy, quality life. Since 1981, IC has offered a comprehensive system of programs and services including housing, case management, psychiatric care, employment and vocational support, wellness, and social opportunities. Our programs create a restorative environment that includes the support of others who are in recovery and access to targeted resources that equip them to initiate and sustain the healthy behaviors necessary to live and work independently in the community. BJC Behavioral Health is a community health center that provides and coordinates behavioral health services for more than 8,000 seriously mentally ill adults and seriously emotionally disturbed children in St. Louis City, St. Louis County, St. François, Iron and Washington counties. As an Administrative Agent of the Missouri Department of Mental Health (DMH), BJC Behavioral Health serves as a major point of entry for people eligible for mental health services funded by DMH and is responsible for serving as gatekeeper to the public mental health system. The Peer Support Specialist will share lived experiences of recovery, sharing and supporting the use of recovery tools, and modeling successful recovery behaviors to help individuals with mental illness recognize their capacity for resilience. This is done by helping individuals who have mental illnesses and substance use disorders develop a network for information and support and to develop a sense of belonging with their communities at large. Peer support activities assist in achieving goals and objectives set forth by the individual in their individualized treatment or recovery plan, and emphasize the opportunity for individuals to support each other as they move forward in their recovery.

Requirements

• High School Diploma or GED
• No Experience
• Certified Missouri Peer Spec
• Valid Driver's License
• Must have your own vehicle to transport clients

Nice To Haves

• Associate's Degree
• <2 years
• Supervisor Experience
• experience with addictions, either personal or family and be familiar with ways to maintain sobriety
• similar experiences and be close enough in age to be able to engage young adults
• experienced homelessness at some point in life and have been successfully housed for the last two years

Responsibilities

• Used lived experiences to help engage with clients by supporting them through the intake and enrollment process.
• Working in a partnership with our Housing Liaison to help with clients who are unhoused.
• Start and sustain mutual support groups
• Promote dialogues on recovery and resilience.
• Teach and model symptom management skills.
• Teach and model problem-solving skills.
• Rehab (CTT) Teams – Help individuals identify what will help improve their quality of life and then identify goals and barriers to achieving a better quality of life. As member of the treatment team, peer support specialists have identified interventions on the treatment plan as other team members do.
• Integrated Dual Diagnosis Treatment (IDDT) – Focus is on recovery from both mental illness and substance use. Peer Support Specialist should have had experience with addictions, either personal or family and be familiar with ways to maintain sobriety
• Transitional Age Youth – Activities are focused on skill young adults (16 to 25) need to be independent in the community, with special attention to those skills that will impact young adults most if not attended to. Must have had similar experiences and be close enough in age to be able to engage young adults.
• Homeless – Activities are focused on acquiring and maintaining safe affordable housing. Must have experienced homelessness at some point in life and have been successfully housed for the last two years.

Benefits

• Comprehensive medical, dental, vison, life insurance, and legal services available first day of the month after hire date
• Disability insurance paid for by BJC
• Annual 4% BJC Automatic Retirement Contribution
• 401(k) plan with BJC match
• Tuition Assistance available on first day
• BJC Institute for Learning and Development
• Health Care and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts
• Paid Time Off benefit combines vacation, sick days, holidays and personal time
• Adoption assistance

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: High school or GED