Peer Support In Mental Health

The idea and practice of people assisting each other to address an issue or set of problems has been in existence since the beginning of time. Hence, peer support in mental health emanates from myriad historical events; two significant events are the advent of moral treatment in the late 18th century and the mental health service user movement that began in the 1970s (Chamberlin, 1978; Davidson, Bellamy, Guy, & Miller, 2012; Swarbrick, 2009; Weiner, 1979; DHHS, 2003). Although the genesis of peer support involved voluntarily exchanges of support between individuals, or from one individual to another, which is contemporarily referred to as mutuality (Mead, Hilton, & Curtis, 2001), the practice of peer support has become virtually a discrete …show more content…
In 2007, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recognized peer support services as both an evidence-based mental health model of care in which a qualified peer support provider assists individuals with their recovery from mental illness and substance use disorders, and an important component in a State’s delivery of effective mental health and substance use disorder treatment. In 2009, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) recognized peers as important service providers in mental health service delivery, and designated the International Association of Peer Specialists (iNAPS) to be among five mental health professional organizations charged with developing recovery-oriented educational materials and training thousands of non-peer and peer staff providing mental health services. On October 1, 2015, New York became the 33rd State to implement a certification process for peer specialists. In accordance with the 1915i Medicaid waiver, which includes Home and Community Based Services (HCBS), mental health peer specialists who meet the requirements can provide specific peer services within organizations that have applied and been designated to provide these …show more content…
Lack of opportunities that promote social support for peer employees; 2. The dearth of experience among supervisors to provide appropriate empathy for individuals who are re-entering the workforce (which may include transitioning their role from patient to worker); 3. Poor compensation and lack of career advancement opportunities for peer staff; and 4. Prevailing attitudes of skepticism among both traditional and peer staff regarding readiness and stability of peer specialists to adapt and function effectively on the job. If these issues remain unaddressed, job satisfaction among peer staff, as well as an organization’s ability to successfully integrate and retain peer staff, will be severely

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