Peer Recovery Specialist

MAJOR FUNCTION

Under the direct supervision of the Senior Director of Behavioral Health and Clinical Supervisor of Behavioral Health, with day to day oversight by the Lead Behavioral Health Counselor for Substance Use, the Peer Recovery Support Specialist fulfills a unique role in the support and recovery of patients with a substance use disorder. The Peer Recovery Specialist (PRSS) is a person in recovery from substance use disorder, who has been trained to work with others on his/her individual road to recovery and incorporate personal experience to inspire hope in those they serve. The PRSS will work closely with clients and in collaboration with a multi-disciplinary integrated care team to optimize the patient experience and connection to the MAT program. The PRSS will be responsible for connecting with existing patients and conducting targeted outreach in the and around the surrounding areas of Trenton.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Provide exceptional service and/or care to all patients, customers and team members.
• With appropriate releases, communicates with family members and significant others as indicated.

• Work within the Greater Trenton area including high risk neighborhoods and areas to reach substance-using adults
• Conduct individualized and group meetings with clients and provide a set of non-clinical activities that engage, educate and offer support to individuals;
• Facilitating groups on recovery that are tailored to the needs of clients
• Teach and role model the value of every individual’s recovery experience, including modeling effective coping techniques and self-help strategies.
• Serve as a recovery agent (providing and advocating for any effective recovery-based services to aid clients in daily living).

• Assist clients with community integration and making connections to recovery supports in the community.

• Comply with all regulations under HIPAA and relevant grant funding as applicable
• Maintain appropriate records of activities, participants, fidelity, and outcomes
• Attends team meetings with the program personnel and clinical staff to report and review program progress.
• Contacts key personnel at participating centers and other service/health-related organizations with access to target population to identify status of services and coordinate patient care.

• Assists in the collections of outcome data.
• Provides reports according to instructions from program coordinating staff.

• Other duties as assigned

Staff Development:

• Serves as a full member of the HJAHC clinical staff team.
• Participates fully in Behavioral Health departmental meetings and other agency meetings as warranted.
• Participates in professional and related meetings, conferences, and continuing education training as available; prepares reports as requested.
• Keeps appraised of developing areas of substance use and provides colleagues with updates as appropriate.

• Learns and implements various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the Center or its related units.
• Assists with onboarding of new staff as supervising university interns as requested.

ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Serves as a full member of the HJAHC clinical staff team.
• Participates fully in Behavioral Health departmental meetings and other agency meetings as warranted.
• Participates in professional and related meetings, conferences, and continuing education training as available; prepares reports as requested.
• Keeps appraised of developing areas of substance use and provides colleagues with updates as appropriate.
• Learns and implements various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the Center or its related units.

Requirements

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:

• High School diploma minimum requirement with working knowledge of addictions and the process of recovery.
• At least two years of personal substance use recovery;

LICENSURE AND/OR CERTIFICATIONS:

• Training and certification by the NJ Addictions Professional Board, Inc.
• Working knowledge of addictions, Peer Recovery Specialist Certification required

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES AND OTHER (KSAO’s)

• Ability to read and comprehend instructions, correspondence and memos. Ability to write correspondence; effectively present information in one-on one and small groups to clients and other employees of the organization.

• Computer literate.
• Skill in the application of modern office techniques and practices and the use and care of office machines and equipment. Working knowledge of common software packages necessary to perform the functions of the position.

• Ability to review and abstract data from patient records.
• Bilingual English/Spanish preferred
• To perform this job successfully, an individual should have knowledge of Word Processing software as well as use of an electric medical record.

PHYSICAL & WORK REQUIREMENTS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

This position requires the manual dexterity sufficient to operate phones, computers and other office equipment. The position requires the physical ability to kneel, bend, and perform light lifting. This person must have the ability to write and speak clearly using the English language to convey information and be able to hear at normal speaking levels both in person and over the telephone. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, depth perception and the ability to adjust focus. Generally, the working conditions are good with little or no exposure to extremes in health, safety hazards and/or hazardous materials.