Lead Peer Support Specialist Sacred Heart

Job Summary: Lead Peer Support Specialist

The Sacred Heart Lead Peer Specialist is a person who is walking the path of recovery and through that journey is employed to provide comprehensive support and guidance to people transitioning from the street including ADL skills and/or withdraw management to the program. Peer specialist staff offer one-on-one meetings and strive to empower individuals to connect their hopes, dreams and goals around their personal recovery journey. They assist individuals to navigate the array of services offered. Peers specialists utilize evidence-based interventions and groups to empower residents to make informed choices while increasing their recovery capital and natural supports.

Schedule: Full-time – 40 hours (varied shifts)

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

·    Provide initial support and engagement to new residents to assist them in transitioning from the streets and/ or Withdraw management to establish a sense of trust and well-being.

·       Work with the resident around program orientation especially self-guided journals and other intake paperwork.

·       Escort and support residents in attending appointments, 12-step support meetings and other therapeutic activities outside of their outpatient programs and Mat groups as needed.

·         Utilize your experience of recovery to model and provide on-going intentional support around addiction, drug use and early help minimize individual fears around failure and self-doubt.

·         Work within the core team to support, advocate for, provide updates and seek team feedback on assigned individuals.

·         Encourage participants’ involvement in Sacred Heart resources and programming, becoming familiar with each individual’s needs, desires, and the barriers they may be facing.

·         Work with the Residential Services Coordinator to prepare and review weekly materials for on-site groups.

·         Facilitate and co-facilitate on site structured skill acquisition groups around recovery, relapse triggers and living life with reduced and/or no drug use.

·         Assist residents on-site with increasing their self-esteem and sense of self-efficacy by supporting them to complete therapeutic work (chores), practice a regular routine of self-care and basic ADL skills.

·         Work with residents to implement goals and desires as outlined on the individual recovery plan.

·         Maintain situational awareness at all times and use de-escalation strategies to maintain a calm and welcoming environment, providing individual and group interventions as needed.

·         Assist and support residents to connect to and navigate community resources, and support clients in linkage meetings as needed around jobs and other social service supports.

·         Facilitate weekly recreation activity group.

• Perform both routine and random urine screens as necessary. 

·         Collaborate with residents to identify their strengths, natural support and their identified support person(s) to assist them in building recovery capital and community supports.

·         Be familiar with emergency/crisis procedures.  Contact emergency services and on-call staff in case of resident emergency or property emergency (flood, fire).

·         Establish and maintain healthy relationships with residents, including facilitating recovery and community building groups and activities. Ability to develop and facilitate support groups for residents on and off site.

·         Ability to use Narcan and other life saving measures in case of accidental overdose and/or illness that may require emergency intervention or resuscitation.

·         Collaborate with residents and other supports to create appropriate discharge plans. Connect discharged residents to Alumni Services.

·         Lite housekeeping as it relates to room/bed preparation during intake/discharge.

Documentation and Data Entry:

·         Maintain ETO records and reports as required, in a timely and thorough manner including progress notes, assessments, quarterly goal plans and discharges. Ensure that all required documentation meets agency and contract agency standards.

Assist residents with coordination of benefits and resources:

·         Ensure resident benefits and resources are coordinated by working in partnership with BenePhilly and other agencies such as DPW, SSA and Unemployment Compensation.

·         Refer residents for employment and education services including but not limited to PHOME’s Employment Services, the Honickman Learning Center (Adult Education) and partner with departments associated with resident employment and education goals.

 Meet as scheduled with the following individuals:

·         Participate in staff, team, resident and case consult meetings.

·         Meet as scheduled in supervision with the Residential Services Coordinator.

·         Participate in trainings and continuing education opportunities.

·         Plan and actively participate in site based and agency activities.

Medication Monitoring:

·         Assist resident to comply with taking their prescribed medications per medication monitoring policy and protocols.

·         Review medication supply for each resident and create list of medications to be called into the pharmacy for refills.

·         Organize medication logs for each resident and maintain Medication Records (MARS Sheet) for the month.

·         Receive and document all medications brought in by residents.

Communicate effectively in a respectful, culturally sensitive and timely fashion. Develop and maintain cooperative working relationships with others. Encourage an open expression of ideas and opinions.

Minimum Qualifications

• Lived experience as a person in recovery from substance use disorders and/or mental illness with a strong sense of empathy, support and knowledge.
• Experience in the social service system and the homeless provider network; working knowledge of the drug and alcohol treatment system, and/or the behavioral health system.
• Ability to build trusting relationships with people from diverse backgrounds and interpret cross-cultural influences in a helpful manner.
• Excellent listening, communication, collaboration, and teamwork skills.
• Understanding of and respect for each individual’s unique path to recovery.
• Personal commitment to recovery and empowerment.
• Good computer skills, preferably experience with electronic recordkeeping and familiarity with Outlook.
• Ability to deal effectively with denial and opposition to any facet of recovery.

Preferred Qualifications

·         Peer Certification (CPS or CRS)

·         Bi-lingual Spanish/English

• Valid Driver’s License

Project HOME is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All offers of employment are contingent on successful completion of a drug screen and background checks.

Project HOME reserves the right to revise or change job duties and responsibilities as needed. This job description is not meant to be an all-inclusive statement of the duties and responsibilities of the job nor does it constitute a written or implied contract.