1Voice is a grass roots organization that advocates. raises awareness. educates. networks and collaborates with the community to better support a recovery community while fighting the stigma of addiction and building positive supports.
Address: 225 Conwell Street, Aurora, Indiana 47001
Country: United States of America
The Alliance For Rights and Advocacy is a unique coalition of self and system grassroots advocates partnering with traditional and peer providers to advance funding, quality of lives, excellence in the delivery of recovery focused rehabilitation and peer support services with a very strong focus on promoting human rights and justice. The Alliance for Rights and Recovery is a state and national change agent dedicated to improving services, public policies and social conditions for people with mental health, substance use and trauma-related challenges, by promoting health, wellness, recovery, with full community inclusion, so that all may achieve maximum potential in communities of choice.
The Alliance for Rights and Recovery has a long history of working with states and organizations to support the cultural shift that is essential if we are to support people moving from lives where one’s illness defines their identity to a life where they thrive through employment, economic self-sufficiency and all that comes with it—family, housing, and most importantly, a life beyond poverty.
The Alliance for Rights and Recovery fully supports the adoption of Individual Placement & Support (IPS) strategies into all Supported Employment programs and mental health systems across the country and has even helped to do so in such states as Utah, Wisconsin, and Colorado. Grounded in a belief that the work for organizations starts much earlier than when a person enters an employment program, the Alliance for Rights and Recovery helps states and organizations transform their culture to one where individuals say “yes” to employment. Their program partners include:
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
lens@rightsandrecovery.org
New York State is in the process of shifting from a fee-for-service reimbursement model to one based on value. The Alliance for Rights and Recovery works with behavioral health providers on Medicaid Managed Care readiness initiatives and will continue this effort as changes to the system of care continue.
Country
United States of America
The New York Association of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services (NYAPRS) created the first Peer Bridger™ Program in the nation to support long term residents of New York state psychiatric hospitals with lived experience of mental health, addiction, and trauma related challenges to make successful transitions into their home communities. Since then, they have worked with managed care organizations and provider partners to support people to transition from other settings including community hospitals and adult care facilities, and to engage and support individuals while they’re in the community to break the cycle of emergency and inpatient services.
Country
United States of America
The Alliance for Rights and Recovery Peer Services division is based on the simple principle that all people, regardless of psychiatric disability or trauma-related condition have the capacity to recovery and that all people should be afforded the opportunity to try.
Country
United States of America
A Psychiatric Advance Directive (PAD) allows an individual to create instructions and designate someone to act on their behalf in the event the individual should become incapable of making decisions regarding her/his mental health treatment. It can help you get the treatment you want and avoid the treatment you don’t, even if you are unable to communicate those preferences.
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
harveyr@rightsandrecovery.org
Technical assistance team members are Subject Matter Experts in Transformational Culture Change. Pioneering recovery culture change in 1996, we have worked with hundreds of organizations around the nation to transform from a Medical Model approach to care to a Recovery Model approach where people thrive. Creating a culture that supports people to discover hope, set expectations for themselves, heal relationships, find employment, and live in the community is at the center of the recovery-oriented culture we help organizations to develop.
We offer customized technical assistance based on your interests and needs. We offer TA to academic institutions, professional organizations, provider networks, managed care organizations and IPA’s. Technical assistance can be offered on a day or hourly rate or a project basis. We look forward to tailoring technical assistance offerings that match your organization’s goals.
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
lens@rightsandrecovery.org
This website provides information on various topics to support mental health providers in designing and delivering recovery oriented care. In addition to providing you with information and resources, we also provide you with over 90 curricula to choose from completely at NO CHARGE! Many organizations have generously uploaded their curricula to this site to share with all of us and we ask that you do the same so that this site can serve as a repository of curricula for all.
Country
United States of America
The Alliance team is comprised of Subject Matter Experts who have myriad of experience providing high-quality training and technical assistance to behavioral health providers throughout New York State, the United States, and its territories, in a variety of areas. Each TA event is facilitated through the lens of psychiatric rehabilitation, ensuring that the voice of the people who receive services is an integral part of technical assistance, and furthers the vision of implementation of recovery-oriented services. Topics Covered include:
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
lens@rightsandrecovery.org
The CORE Peer Navigator Project, through the Alliance, connects a Peer Navigator with Health and Recovery Plan (HARP) members who are discovering recovery and all its possibilities as they work toward success. One call to the Navigator Line at 855-PEERNAV (855-733-7628) connects an individual with a peer to assist in identifying goals and accessing Community Oriented Recovery and Empowerment (CORE) Services to help meet those goals. The Peer Navigator will support them throughout the referral, engagement, and service delivery process.
The CORE Peer Navigator Project is designed to connect people to resources to help them meet their recovery goals. We can explore if you are HARP eligible through your Medicaid insurance plan, which will allow you to consider Community Oriented Recovery and Empowerment (CORE) Services as an option. My goal is to help you identify whatever services or resources could best benefit you—all while providing peer support through the process.
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
emilyc@rightsandrecovery.org
The Alliance for Rights and Recovery envisions a world where behavioral health is a priority and organizations are robust with strong and skilled leaders. We seek to support leaders in elevating their skill sets so that, through them, they empower their teams, who will in turn, empower those they work with to live their best life.
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
EdyeSchwartz1@gmail.com
The New York Psychiatric Rehabilitation Training Academy (NYPRTA) is a three-year Statewide training initiative funded by the New York State Office of Mental Health. The Alliance for Rights and Recovery (The Alliance) in partnership with Boston University Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation with support from New York’s leading training and technical assistance providers and partner organizations. NYPRTA provides opportunities for both people who participate in services as well as the practitioners and agency leadership that support them. People who participate in psychiatric rehabilitation services benefit from training through improved outcomes and satisfaction with services. The people who support them benefit by increasing knowledge and skills in providing psychiatric rehabilitation services, which leads to improved job satisfaction and workforce retention.
Country
United States of America
The Alliance for Rights and Recovery Collective is a team dedicated to increasing organizational and program level systems transformation among New York State Office of Mental Health licensed or funded programs through intensive, on-site (or virtual) training and technical assistance at no cost The Collective works with agency administrators, program managers and direct care professionals to in implementing recovery focused, evidence-based practices. We create a learning environment that challenges mindset, strengthens skills, and builds a foundation for recovery. Their training and technical assistance initiatives are designed and delivered specifically for your organization and are individualized to meet your specific program needs.
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
larryh@rightsandrecovery.org
Address: 194 Washington Ave, Suite 400 Albany, NY 12210
Country: United States of America
Alternatives to Suicide is a peer led support group that allows participants to talk about suicidal thoughts, feelings, or experiences without fear of being judged. Participants share their struggles and successes, provide support for one another, and strategize about alternatives to help each other best cope with difficult life circumstances. People are encouraged to come in both times of strength and challenge; you need not be in crisis to attend this group. Click here to read more about the Alternatives to Suicide Approach. This approach is born out of the work of Wildflower Alliance, a grassroots peer support, advocacy, and training organization with a focus on harm reduction and human rights. MHA-WI is excited to provide virtual Alt. to Su. support groups! The group will meet on the second and fourth Thursdays of the month, from 7-8:30pm CT, online via Zoom. These groups are free to attend and welcome to any adults 18 years or older.
Country: United States of America
Email: psw@Mhawisconsin.org
Alternatives to Suicide is a peer-based response to supporting people who have made suicidal attempts or who have experienced suicidal thoughts. The approach was developed in 2008 by the Western Massachusetts Recovery Learning Community (USA – now called The Wildflower Alliance). This peer-to-peer practice consists of mutual support groups that provide a space for voicing, sitting with, understanding and moving through suicidal thoughts. Alternatives to Suicide groups are for anyone 18+ years old with personal experiences of suicidal thoughts or actions to talk about suicidal experiences and other forms of emotional distress without fear of being put through a crisis management system.
Alt2Su Groups: Alt2Su peer support groups are for anyone 18+ years old with personal experiences of suicidal thoughts or actions to talk about suicidal experiences and other forms of emotional distress without fear of being put through a crisis management system.
Community Forums: Community forums are an opportunity for health and allied professionals, friends, family, and peers to attend a 60 to 90-minute presentation of the Alternatives to Suicide approach, followed by Q&A.
Training Programs: Alternatives to Suicide offers two trainings: A three-day Group Facilitator Training, and A two-day “When Conversation turns to Suicide” Training
Country: Australia
The PSC is operating both online through Teams and in-person. You can enter our Teams meeting by clicking on the Teams meeting link. Once you enter the meeting, you will be greeted by one of our kind and compassionate volunteers who will walk you through our confidentiality form and will be a listening ear for you for the remainder of the session.
Queers 4 Peers: A new section of the Peer Support Centre (PSC) offering confidential and empathetic sessions during which Queer-identifying volunteers listen to Queer students and provide helpful resource referrals and events hosted by Queer students, for Queer students
BIPOC Talk is a branch of the Peer Support Centre that is catered towards BIPOC students. Sessions are conducted by BIPOC-identifying volunteers who are trained to confidentially, non-judgementally, and empathetically listen to students and recommend appropriate resources
TALKS Week: The aim of the Queen’s TALKS campaign is to spread the word that you don’t have to be an expert to help a friend. Each fall the Peer Support Centre holds this week-long campaign to encourage members of the Queen’s community to support each other in times of need.
Cares Week: the Peer Support Centre dedicates one week during the winter term to promoting self-care and self-compassion. Being a student can be stressful, and we often forget how important it is to prioritize our own well-being.
Address: Rideau Building, Rooms 202, 203, and 204 Mitchell Hall Satellite Location: Health Promotion Hub, Rm. 122
Country: Australia
Email: peersupport@ams.queensu.ca
The Artsy Peer is an artistic approach to peer support, from someone with compassion and understanding from first hand experience as a mental health consumer and as a mental health worker. It is a program designed to empower, encourage, and inspire the individual to be artistic, creative and innovative in being the sole person in their own journey through recovery.
Email: Lfreeman@artsypeer.com
Country: New Zealand
Email: hayley@mindandbody.co.nz
Balance Aotearoa provide peer support & advocacy services in Whanganui and district. They provide a wide range of weekly groups and activities aiding holistic well-being and social connection including:
Address: Community House, Room 120, 60 Ridgway Street Whanganui 4540 New Zealand
Country: New Zealand
Email: info@balance.org.nz
Beyond empathy is an award winning arts + community cultural development company. They partner with communities living under pressure to create high-calibre artistic projects which explore creativity, culture and lived experience through fictional stories. BE listens and amplifies these stories to national audiences enabling action beyond empathy.
Holding the Past, Handling the Future is a creative ageing project for Older people.
Country
Australia
Ngurra in Our Veins is a long-term arts project addressing the needs of aging Martu people, as their requirement for medical care makes it difficult for them to return to their remote community homes in the late stages of life. This collaborative project led by Martu artist/filmmaker Curtis Taylor will result in a significant multi-arts installation that will virtually and sensorially relocate elders back to Country.
Country
Australia
Protection blends film and animation to tell stories about childhood, inspired and created by the lived experiences of children from public housing estates in the Illawarra.
Country
Australia
Released in 2013 Rites of Passage is a raw, uncensored and honest film inspired by the life experiences of the young people who were involved in the making of the feature-length drama as cast and crew under the direction of an internationally renowned filmmaker.
Country
Australia
Sea of Bellies is an ongoing arts program, delivered across several communities, connecting young Aboriginal mothers with Elders and midwives before and after the birth of their children.
Country
Australia
Country: Australia
Email: admin@be.org.au
Mental health peer support organization that works to educate and empower consumers/survivors of the mental health system * community outreach, such as orientation to the community, participatory art activities, sharing circles, social and educational activities, relaxation groups, workshops and guest speakers and monthly events.
Address: 450 Spruce St London, ON N5W 4P3
Country: United Kingdom
Email: canvoice@gtn.net
The Centre for Innovation in Peer Support provides system support to organizations who have peer staff, through training, implementation, evaluation & research, capacity building, knowledge brokerage, and quality improvement. The Centre for Innovation in Peer Support (formerly Enhancing and Sustaining Peer Support Initiative) promotes meaningful engagement and effective peer support services regionally, provincially, nationally and internationally. Since its creation in 2015 it has been engaging and supporting 11 Mississauga Halton LHIN funded & accredited Health Service Providers (HSPs). Engaging over 40 peer support workers, 24 peer supervisors across 25 different programs in community, residential & hospital settings. Active engagement and support provided to many other HSPs & organizations; plus regional, provincial, national & international collaborators.
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Drop-In Social Connections are free, drop-in, virtual social connection opportunities are open to anyone aged 16 and older. The virtual waiting room opens 15 minutes before the session begins, and our groups will start on time.
Country
Canada
Contact Person / Email
teach@shhalton.org
The Peer Position Network (PPN) practices an ongoing commitment to Core Values and Expectations/Actions of Peer Support and Peer Support Code of Conduct. Members are positive representatives of peer support in organizations and community, facilitating change via role modelling, collaboration, advocacy and knowledge exchange. The group holds each other in positive regard and treats each other according to peer support values and values in action; celebrates diversity in working styles that are grounded to the values; emains solution focused, learns from each other and engages in reflective and reflexive practices; shares knowledge, resources and different learning opportunities that are available; and participates in the creation of resources in support of peer practices
Country
Canada
Peer Support Navigators connect with you over the phone, face-to face by video chat or text messaging to provide you short-term support. Peer Support Navigators:
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Country
Canada
Contact Person / Email
teach@shhalton.org
The Center for Innovation in Peer Support (Centre), housed at Support & Housing – Halton, recently underwent an amalgamation with TEACH. Collaboratively, we will continue to ensure active engagement & empowerment of lived experience and/or family expertise; and the integration of effective peer support services regionally, provincially, nationally and internationally.
Country
Canada
The Peer Position Supervisor Network (PPSN) provides direct support to one another to share resources and enhance best practices for peer positions in their workplace. They:
Country
Canada
The Centre peer-led groups are a safe, non-judgmental space for supportive conversations. To ensure confidentiality and safety of the group, we require all participants new to the Centre including legacy TEACH to register for Virtual Self-Help groups.
Country
Canada
Contact Person / Email
teach@shhalton.org
Country: Canada
Email: info@centreforinnovationinpeersupport.com
The Centre of Excellence in Peer Support (CEPS) provides a centralised specialist clearinghouse and online resource centre for mental health peer support. It was set up in response to the growing interest in and recognition of peer support work, for both consumers and families/carers. A collaborative project, CEPS aims to support a sustainable peer support sector by providing linkage, service mapping and information-sharing. It is intended for use by consumers, families/carers, peer support workers, community mental health organisations, NGOs and individuals who provide or want to provide peer support.
Starting a Peer Support Service or Group includes three new training modules developed by the Centre of Excellence in Peer Support are now available to download. These training modules are designed as self-directed resources to facilitate thoughtful and effective development of peer support initiatives. The modules were launched on 31 October 2013 at the CEPS Peer Conference in Melbourne, Australia. In line with CEPS’ aim to promote knowledge sharing, the modules also feature a range of recommended further reading from leading local and international peer support programs. You can access supporting materials via the CEPS Research and Resources Directories.
Country
Australia
"Peer support is a system of giving and receiving help founded on key principles of respect, shared responsibility, and mutual agreement of what is helpful. Peer support is not based on psychiatric models and diagnostic criteria. It is about understanding another’s situation empathically through the shared experience of emotional and psychological pain. When people find affiliation with others they feel are 'like' them, they feel a connection. This connection, or affiliation, is a deep, holistic understanding based on mutual experience where people are able to 'be' with each other without the constraints of traditional (expert/patient) relationships."
A Charter of Peer Support was developed by people with mental health issues and families/carers with the support of the Mutual Support and Self Help Consortium in 2011. Informal peer support has always been provided by friends, family and peers. Formal peer support services have been provided by grassroots community organisations and groups in Victoria for more than 30 years. Over the last 10 years, however, the sharing of lived experience has been increasingly recognised as an integral, complementary part of the recovery journey in mental health. Formal recognition has led to increasing numbers of paid peer support roles and a diverse range of terminology, services, activities, practices, protocols, research and resources. These have been developed by individuals, community and special interest groups, health professionals, government departments and support agencies, all aiming to harness the power of peer support for consumers of mental health services and their families/carers. Peer support can be provided in a range of ways:
Each model or variation has merit and can be appropriate for different individuals and at different stages of the recovery process. The Mutual Support and Self Help Consortium led by ARAFEMI are committed to sharing their knowledge and expertise with other organisations who utilise peer support or the sharing of lived experience as part of the recovery process, through the Centre for Excellence in Peer Support.
Country
Australia
Country: Australia
The Community Of Peer Support Specialists is an organisation that hopes to better establish and develop peer support in the mental health scene in Singapore. CPSS has its core values based on H.U.M.A.N—Hope, Unity, Mutuality, Authenticity, acceptance N understanding. Hopefully the work of CPSS can restore the humanistic touch in overcoming mental health issues.
Country: Singapore
Email: hello@communityofpss.com
Fresh Hope For Mental Health provide peer support that is based upon proven clinical research as a bridge to hope.
Fresh Hope for Living Free is a Christian support group that empowers those who have been incarcerated to live free in spite of their past, addictions and/or mental health challenges.
Country
United States of America
Fresh Hope for Teens is a Christian support group for teens who have a mental health challenge and for their teen friends.
Address
5421 N 103rd St, Ste 100 Omaha, NE 68134
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
info@freshhope.us
Here you can be matched to your own personal Hope Coach. A Hope Coach is someone who has been trained and certified by Fresh Hope for Mental Health to help you move from feeling hopeless or stuck to a place of feeling hopeful. A Hope Coach is not a licensed mental health care provider nor a biblical counselor. Rather, a Hope Coach is a short-term friend specifically trained in “how hope happens” and what hopelessness is, all based upon 25 years of clinical research. The Hope Coaching program is a Christian/faith-based ministry. (Please note, you do not need to be a person of faith to connect with a Hope Coach. And Hope Coaches are not here to evangelize anyone.)
The friendship between a Hope Coach and one who has requested their help is short-term, meaning three to five times of chatting with your Hope Coach. Although it could be as few as one or two, or possibly a few more than five if necessary. Here at the Hope Coach Connector, you’ll be matched with a Hope Coach that you can communicate via phone, text, Zoom, and email. Everything is confidential. Within the Hope Coach Connector, you’ll also find videos, and even some courses on finding hope and moving forward in life.
Country
United States of America
Hope Coaching is a free ministry that Fresh Hope offers by talking with a Hope Coach.
Country
United States of America
Key to Hope is a Christian support group for parents caring for a child with disabilities or mental health challenges, who need support for their own mental health. They will help you find real hope so you can live a full, rich, and faith-filled life in spite of caregiving and mental health needs.
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
maria@freshhope.us
Mental Health Strong and Fresh Hope for Mental Health offer a group to bring hope, resources and support to couples with mental health and addiction challenges, so that their relationship can thrive, and they can live full, rich and faith-filled lives.
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
samantha@freshhope.us
Refocusing Widows is a faith-based ministry initiative under the umbrella of Fresh Hope. We offer research-supported peer-to-peer support structures, as well as personal coaching, to encourage widows to embrace and move through their grief to a new season of growth and personal accomplishment.
Country
United States of America
Fresh Hope offers Trauma Healing Groups, developed by Christian mental health professionals of the Trauma Healing Institute of the American Bible Society. This unique method of Trauma Healing unites proven mental health practices and engagement with God through the Bible.
Country
United States of America
Country: United States of America
Postal Address: PO Box 5, Elkhorn NE 68022
Email: info@freshhope.us
Junction Peer Support - Te Whare Hu?nga provide one-to-one and group support, advocacy, information & access to a wide range of support groups
Address
C/- Historic Village 159 17th Avenue West Tauranga
Country
New Zealand
Contact Person / Email
reception@turningpoint.org.nz
Sage Career Support - Te Whare Rapuara help people shape and determine their own direction
Address
C/- Historic Village 159 17th Avenue West Tauranga
Country
New Zealand
Contact Person / Email
sage@turningpoint.org.nz
Address: 28 Carlisle Street Greerton Tauranga
Country: New Zealand
Email: kurt@junction.org.nz
Lambton Mental Wellness Centre (LMWC) provides recovery-oriented mental health peer support in Sarnia-Lambton. LMWC provides a safe & accepting environment where peers can offer mutual support, guidance, encouragement & hope that recovery is possible. They aim to meet and sustain the mental health needs for all of Sarnia/Lambton through education, social recreation, peer support and partnering with other local agencies and health care professionals ensuring mentally healthy people in a healthy
Lambton Family Initiative (LFI) is a program of Lambton Mental Wellness Centre that provides FREE support services for family/caregivers of individuals who have mental health challenges. We ourselves are families who support a loved one with mental illness.
Country
Canada
LMWC promotes mental health by offering on-site social recreational programming as well as daily support groups.
Country
Canada
Address: 109 Durand St, Sarnia, Ontario N7T5A1
Country: Canada
Email: cheryl@lmwc.ca
Life Connections supports individuals who are experiencing Mental Health and Substance addiction issues and who want to work on their recovery goals and situations before getting into a crisis situation.
They create peer-to-peer opportunities in Iowa for advancing hope, recovery, and wellness for all people, including anyone who has struggled with emotional distress, psychiatric diagnosis, substance abuse, trauma, or a variety of other life-interrupting challenges.
Address: 916 11th Street Dewitt, IA 52742
Country: United States of America
MHAPS is a free and confidential service for anyone experiencing mental distress and/or an addiction.
Address: 357 Madras Street (beside the Heart Foundation) Christchurch 8013 New Zealand
Country: New Zealand
Postal Address: P.O. Box 21020 Christchurch 8140
Email: reception@mhaps.org.nz
Mental Health America Centre For Peer Support is a hub that has all the latest on peer support. The Center for Peer Support serves as a source of information and resources to be used both by those interested in peer support and for peers themselves.
Friendship's Peer Support program is a self -directed recovery based program assisting adults living with chronic mental illnesses with re-establishing and developing essential skills needed to reintegrate into the community. The program is designed to assist these individuals in gaining skills and recovery modes that enable them to maintain their mental health recovery, eliminate mental health crises, minimize hospital visits, stay out of jail, and move into the community with sustainable employment.
Country
United States of America
How To Become A Peer Support Specialist is information to share the tools, skills, and information you have learned to transform your own life with individuals going through similar struggles. Not only do you get to contribute to the lives of others, but you also improve your own recovery and wellbeing in the process. As more and more learn about the impact of peer support, opportunities and career paths for peer specialists will grow and expand. The growth of peer support has the potential to radically transform the ways we support people in the behavioral health system.
Country
United States of America
Independence Center (Mental Health Connecticut) promotes value, respect and meaningful relationships, which are integral to engaging in the community. The IC offers an environment for individuals with mental health conditions to gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence to achieve their goals and realize recovery. Health and wellness play an integral role in all aspects of the IC, and daily workshops provide members with supports that can positively impact their recovery journey and showcase individual purpose.
Address
21 Church Street Waterbury, CT 06702
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
tgenova@mhconn.org
It's My Life: Social Self-Directed Care combines the evidence-based practices of Peer Support and Psychiatric Rehabilitation and the emerging best practices of Self-Directed Care and Life Coaching into an integrated skill and support strategy to help people build networks of friends and intimate relationships. This project promotes social inclusion so individuals feel less isolated which helps to increase self-esteem and self-worth. This in turn improves overall functioning with networks that include supportive and sustainable relationships that will increase their quality of life while reducing crisis events and hospitalizations. Ultimately, this project assists the participants in setting and reaching social and personal goals.
Country
United States of America
The Mental Health Association in IRC sponsors three peer-run Drop-in Centers which provide a safe haven for adults with severe and persistent mental illness. They are located in Indian River, Martin and Okeechobee Counties. Open 365 days a year the Centers are designed to empower members to enhance the quality of their lives. Recreational and social activities are offered to all members to promote a supportive, active and empowering atmosphere as members actively participate in their recovery.
Country
United States of America
The National Certified Peer Specialist (NCPS) certification is a voluntary, examination-based certification that allows peers to demonstrate a high level of experience and competencies in peer support. The NCPS does not replace state certifications but is an add-on to required state certifications. Individuals who earn the NCPS go above and beyond state certification to show their leadership and commitment to the growth and advancement of the field.
Mental Health America (MHA) believes the NCPS is a stepping stone toward the advancement and expansion of the field of peer support. Our goals include more career trajectories for peers and more opportunities for payment, including in Medicare and commercial insurance. While MHA works toward these goals, NCPSs are individuals jointly committed to the advancement of the field.
Country
United States of America
Contact Person / Email
kdavis@mhanational.org
At Peer Place Community Support Center, members interact and socialize with fellow members and their trained Recovery Support Mentors. Through daily groups, one on one peer coaching, and social connection, members feel supported and learn skills that aid them in their recovery journey.
Country
United States of America
The Peers Empowering Peers program (PEP) program trains and deploys Peer Specialists – people who have lived experience with mental illness themselves – to help their peers navigate the health care system reduce re-hospitalization rates, improve behavioral health, and improve quality of life. Our Peer Specialists work to help patients who are hospitalized with behavioral health diagnoses and then follows them into the community to assist them in their recovery. Contact: 561-832-3755
Country
United States of America
The concept of “peer support” in mental health has its roots in the self-help movement that began in the 1970s. During a time of intense focus on civil rights and social change, people who had survived the abuses of psychiatric hospitals came together to support each other and work towards healing. They understood there was more to recovery than “symptom management” and that individuals who had been hospitalized were capable of supporting one another and living meaningful lives in the community.
Thanks to the leadership of peers and the growing evidence around the practice over the past decades, the peer workforce has grown to over 24,000 supporters working in all 50 states and U.S. territories. Considered an evidence-based practice by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), peer support is Medicaid reimbursable in over 41 states. From the criminal justice system to housing services to hotlines, peers model recovery and contribute to the lives of others.
Address: 500 Montgomery Street, Suite 820 Alexandria, VA. 22314
Country: United States of America
MHA-NE is a nonprofit, peer operated, and participant-driven organization dedicated to serving and providing alternative programs to those who live with mental health and/or substance use and addiction issues.
Address: 1500 S 70th St Suite 201 Lincoln, NE 68506
Country: United States of America
MIX is a mental health community day service in the Hutt Valley offering programmes in art and wellbeing. They support people who have experienced or are experiencing mental health distress in the Hutt Valley. MIX participants are supported for who they are, to be themselves, and to reach their full potential. MIX offers an inclusive and supportive space that aims to foster self-determination and wellbeing. Their programmes focus on supporting the recovery process for people with mental health needs. They encourage optimum functioning, growth, independence and connections within the community. They have two daily programmes:
Address: Upper Hutt Bowling Club Exchange St
Country: New Zealand
Postal Address: 6 Rowe Parade, Wainuiomata
Email: kervin.farr@mix.org.nz
Monadnock Peer Support are a member-driven organization that establishes a culture in which our members and participants feel more empowered to get support from and give support to peers. We provide many free services including 30+ support groups weekly, meals, field trips, respite stays and more!
Address: 24 Vernon Street Keene, NH 03431
Country: United States of America
The National Peer Helpers Association (NPHA) is a nonprofit corporation whose mission is to provide leadership and promote excellence in the field of peer helping. With members throughout the world, NPHA has become the preeminent international support organization for peer helping professionals. It offers:
The National Peer Helpers Association enjoys 37 state organizations/points of contact and 14 international affiliates. NPHA is dedicated to promoting excellence in the peer resource field. Its membership is adult professionals that are responsible for peer programs. Since peer programs currently exist in schools, social service agencies, faith communities, geographic communities, nursing homes and youth organizations, the NPHA membership is composed of representative from many populations. The largest representation of NPHA members is from the K-12 school and higher education population.
Peer helping is simply people helping other people. When people experience frustrations, worries, concerns, and other life events, they typically turn to their friends, not professionals, for help, advice, practical assistance, and support. The peer programs that the National Peer Helpers Associations supports have various names such as:
Peer helping is a variety of supportive services initiated by peers in diverse settings. Often, peer helpers are young people, trained and supervised by professionals, who adhere to ethics and standards endorsed by helping professionals and NPHA. Peer helpers often become preventive agents who identify problems and encourage others to seek the necessary help from appropriate professionals. Peer helpers provide people with opportunities for learning, guidance, emotional support, and growth which translates to reduced drug and alcohol involvement, higher academic skills, reduced HIV/AIDS, and unwanted pregnancy, reduced conflict, increased understanding of differences, and increased service to others. By helping others, peer helpers often increase their own self-esteem and personal functioning. Peers do not replace licensed or certified professionals or practitioners, but often serve as an extension of the services these professionals provide. Through much research and evaluation, peer programs have been found to be one of the most proven and effective prevention strategies.
Address: PO BOX 32272 Kansas City , Missouri 64171-5272
Country: United States of America
The National Association of Peer Supporters (NAPS) is a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization that includes members from every state and several countries outside the US. Members of this network can come together to share their ideas and innovations, exchange resources and information based on real world application, and add their voice to others when concerns and issues affecting all of us require a global response from a global community. We are actively and intentionally working on making iNAPS a more inclusive and safe space for individuals who have historically been marginalized.
NAPS will continue conversations with peer support workers in other countries to explore the establishment of an international coalition and continue to welcome individuals from across the world as both members and volunteers. NAPS will also build strong partnerships with international organizations, participate in global gatherings and coalitions, and work to advance collaborative, peer support initiatives world-wide.
NAPS leadership is moving forward with a laser-focused approach to growing and supporting their membership, and addressing workforce development issues that impose barriers to the growth of the peer support profession. Over the coming months the NAPS board will evaluate their capacity to search for and hire an Executive Director.
Find a peer is a database of peer specialists. It is possible to search by state, city, specialty and additional training.
Country
United States of America
Global Peer Support Celebration Day (GPSCD) is an annual celebration of peer supporters, peer support, and recognizing their work in helping their peers with mental health, addictions, and or trauma-related challenges move along the continuum of recovery and inclusion into communities of his/her choosing. This annual, worldwide event takes place annually on the third Thursday in October.
The Global Peer Support Celebration Day (GPSCD) committee members developed this toolkit to assist peer supporters in crafting, creating, and developing a unique and personal event in his/her country, state, region, or city; however, peer supporters are welcome to develop his/her own materials. The information and examples contained in this Toolkit can be mixed and matched or customized to fit the look, feel, and needs of peer supporters, organizations, and the like.
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United States of America
Peer Specialist Training and Certification Programs provides a national overview of the certified peer specialist workforce
Country
United States of America
The National Peer Specialist Registry was developed by a collaboration between Doors to Well Being, National Technical Assistance Center, and the International Association of Peer Supporters (iNAPS) supported by a grant from SAMHSA. This registry will allow peer specialists to display your skills, grow a global peer specialist network, and connect to employers. They hope those looking to hire peer specialists will use this registry to recruit candidates for interesting employment opportunities and increase the presence of peer support throughout healthcare and communities worldwide. An individual registrant may select what information is for public view and what to keep private.
The iNAPS mission is to grow the peer support profession by promoting the inclusion of peer specialists throughout healthcare and other community systems world-wide. We have the vision that peer support is a viable option for anyone who wants the mutuality of a compassionate peer support relationship. It is our desire that this peer support registry supports that mission and vision.
This registry is an opportunity for you to connect with other peer specialists or recovery coaches in your area, around your country or throughout the world. It is also a way in which you can display your life work so that employers can seek you out if desired. We know that a peer support workforce that is connected will have opportunities to learn and grow with fellow peer specialists. We are stronger together!
Country
United States of America
Peer support providers are people with a personal experience of recovery from mental health, substance use, or trauma conditions who receive specialized training and supervision to guide and support others who are experiencing similar mental health, substance use or trauma issues toward increased wellness. The term peer supporter is an umbrella for many different peer support titles and roles, such as:
In general, a peer supporter is an individual who has made a personal commitment to his or her own recovery, has maintained that recovery over a period of time, has taken special training to work with others, and is willing to share what he or she has learned about recovery in an inspirational way. In many states, there is an official certification process (training and test) to become a qualified “peer specialist.” Not all states certify peer support providers, but most organizations require peer support providers (who are employed) need to complete training that is specific to the expected responsibilities of the job (or volunteer work). Often, a peer supporter has extra incentive to stay well because he or she is a role model for others. Those who provide authentic peer support believe in recovery and work to promote the values that:
Address: PO Box 755 Norton, MA 02766
Country: United States of America
Postal Address: PO Box 19265 Cincinnati, Ohio 45219
Email: info@inaops.org.
NISA/Northern Initiative for Social Action is an organization run by and for people with lived experience of mental health challenges/illness and consumers of mental health services. Programs and Services include:
Recovery Wellness: NISA believes that the whole person is important, and when you are here you will consider the many dimensions of wellness, like physical, emotional, financial, spiritual, and social wellness. Our monthly calendar is full of opportunities to explore your wellness.
Peer Support: You are not alone. Your peers are here to accompany you shoulder-to-shoulder as you navigate your recovery. There are many ways you can access peer support at NISA, in groups or one-to-one.
Research: NISA was created out of research, and we continue to believe that if we ask the right questions, the answers can improve life for all of us. NISA’s ParNorth Research Unit regularly partners with community researchers to ask questions about the experience of mental health recovery and other topics important to us.
Skills and Goals: NISA aims to help you feel the satisfaction of doing a good job, knowing that your work is benefiting someone else in the community. At NISA, you can do that in the Northern Computer Recycling Depot (we call it ‘NCRD’) or in Warm Hearts/Warm Bodies (‘WH/WB’), our quilting program.
Creative Expression: Sometimes we have no words for our experience. Sometimes we have a lot. No matter how you express yourself, you will have the chance at NISA to tap into yourself and share it with others. Our creative expression programs include Artists’ Loft, the Writers’ Circle, and Open Minds Quarterly.
Social Action: NISA regularly participates in the community, offering presentations, organizing events, and advocating for the needs of people living with mental health challenges/illness. If this is your passion, talk to us! We’ll find a way to get you involved.
Open Minds Quarterly is a literary journal that features explorations of life in a mad world. More specifically, it welcomes writing and art from people with lived experience of what is variously called mental health challenges, mental illness, madness, neurodiversity etc.
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Canada
Each night, 365 days a year, peer support workers are available to answer your call. The Warm Line offers peer support to folks all across northeastern Ontario. All calls are kept confidential. Whether you need help with a particular problem or a listening ear, the Warm Line is open to your call from 6 pm to midnight.
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Canada
Address: 36 Elgin St. 2nd Floor. Sudbury, Ontario
Country: Canada
Email: info@nisa.on.ca
Peer Support Space is a peer-led 501(c)3, located in Central Florida. Their mission is to build, and be a local hub for, diverse peer-led recovery communities. Peer Support Space was born out of a need for a peer-led organization that exists outside of the current system which keep leaving behind the same communities. No matter what somebody is going through, we believe they shouldn't have to do it alone.
Country: United States of America
Recovery Options Made Easy’s certified peers lead the way with lived experience to advocate for better and safer roads to recovery. Their continuum of accessible care services—from housing support to peer services—weaves our varied experiences together to provide trauma-informed empowerment, wellness, and recovery options, while respecting individuality and everyone’s right to choice.
Address: 75 Jamestown Street Gowanda, NY 14070
Country: United States of America
Email: info@recoveryoptionsny.org
Recovery West is a peer support program offering drop-in peer support, groups, vocational services, and a Recovery College.
Address: 601-7700 Hurontario Street Brampton ON L6Y 4M3
Country: Canada
Email: info@cmhapeel.ca
Resilience Collective (RC) is a peer community building resilience through the support of one another. Resilience Collective (RC) is an IPC registered mental health charity providing dedicated peer support to young adults. Persons in recovery are supported through our Resilience Education workshops and peer support initiatives such as the Human Library Experience where persons harness their mental health lived experience to support others on their recovery journeys. Through community building efforts and co-producing holistic mental health solutioning with stakeholders, we hope to encourage more persons in recovery to seek help and find support
Circles of Resilience (CR) is a safe space where peers, or persons with lived experience of mental health conditions, come together to support each other thrive and lead authentic lives. These peer support circles exist to form tight-knit communities of peers who believe in the value of connection. During the monthly sessions within their consistent and familiar groups, members develop courage and confidence to share vulnerably through the structured discussion of their lived experiences. By showing up for themselves and each other, they support each other to progress in their mental health journeys together.
Address
176 Orchard Road, #05-05 The Centrepoint Singapore 238843
Country
Singapore
The Human Library Experience is a platform where persons with mental health conditions take on the role of Human Books to share their innermost thoughts about their mental health journeys and the value of peer support, within the boundaries of a safe space. The human library offers a unique, honest and up-close experience to engage in authentic sharings, normalise conversations surrounding mental health, and break down barriers to reduce mental health stigma.
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Singapore
It Starts With You is a mental health resource by Resilience Collective (RC) that chronicles the recovery journeys of peers or persons with lived experience of a mental health condition. It showcases authentic and personal narratives from peers on how they took that first step to seek help and find support despite having to face their mental health struggles.
Address
176 Orchard Road, #05-05 The Centrepoint Singapore 238843
Country
Singapore
Resilience Education is a list of workshops for peers, that were co-produced with fellow peers and other professionals such as clinical professionals and youth leaders. Each workshop focuses on supporting the peer through a stage of their recovery journey, equipping them with relevant theoretical understanding of their mental health experiences and broadening their coping strategies.
Country
Singapore
Address: 176 Orchard Road, #05-05 The Centrepoint Singapore 238843
Country: Singapore
Scottish Recovery Network promotes and supports mental health recovery. Together we can make Scotland a place where people expect mental health recovery and are supported at all stages of their recovery journey.
Country: United Kingdom
Email: info@scottishrecovery.net
Self Help & Peer Support services are provided BY people who experience a mental health and/or addiction issue FOR people who experience a mental health and/or addictions issue. Peer Support is about helping another person move on with their life – to recover. Programs and Services include:
A Suicide-Intervention Support Group The Skills for Safer Living program is a combination of a twenty-week skills-based group and a peer support group for individuals with recurring thoughts and behaviours…
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Canada
Founded in 1999 by Judith Rosenberg, Spark of Brilliance is a peer-driven, community-based mental health initiative that provides creative experiences that foster healing and recovery through the arts. Workshops take place in a safe, welcoming environment and are open to adults living with mental health and/or addictions issues. Workshops are available in Guelph and Kitchener and are offered at no cost to participants.
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Canada
The Centre for Excellence in Peer Support envisions a mental health and additions system where peer support is available at every juncture of the system. They strengthen the practice of peer support by:
Country
Canada
Country: Canada
Sunrise Community for Recovery & Wellness is the Recovery Community Organization (RCO) spanning from Western North Carolina to Charlotte, NC in the east. They provide a variety of programs and services at no charge for individuals affected by trauma that often leads to substance use and mental health challenges.
Country: United States of America
Postal Address: P.O. Box 845 Asheville, NC 28802
Email: sunriseinasheville@gmail.com
TOUGHLOVE© New Zealand Incorporated is a community-based, not-for-profit organisation with tax-exempt charitable status. Programme delivery is reliant primarily on TOUGHLOVE© parents who work as volunteer Reps and financial support provide by national and local community funding agencies. Activities are funded also by membership fees, the sale of Programme materials, workshops and donations.
Country: New Zealand
Transitional Services for New York, Inc. is a comprehensive, community-based mental health organization located in New York City. We provide a continuum of rehabilitative services to enrich the lives of those recovering from mental illness and facilitate their transition to increased levels of independence.
Address: 10-16 162th StreetWhitestone, NY 11357
Country: United States of America
