Peer Respite Support Specialist

Job Description

Position Summary: ABLE House is a home-like facility offering a peaceful and supportive environment for Oregonians experiencing or nearing a mental health crisis. ABLE House provides 24/7 peer support. This is an opportunity to empathetically connect with people drawing from your lived experience in Oregon’s first Peer Run Respite crisis alternative home. Peer Respite Support Specialists use their lived experiences to foster recovery and healing. The facility is located on the Oregon Coast between Lincoln City and Depoe Bay.

• This position is part of our pool of Peer Support Specialists.
• The position will start at approx. $20/hr, with a $2/hr overnight shift differential.

ABLE House is a place of refuge that strives to meet people where they are. The home will provide a safe and comfortable space for guests experiencing mental health crisis or emotional distress to live their experience without judgment and with support from others (peer respite support specialists) who have been through similar situations.

The Candidate:

The ABLE House Peer Respite Support Specialist must identify as a person with lived experience in mental health recovery. This person will embrace the philosophy of resilience and recovery and willing to be a role model of recovery for our guests and others. This person will need to have demonstrated honesty, integrity, reliability, and excellent personal boundaries, minimum of one year of peer support experience, and be in recovery for at least one year. 

It is essential that the person in this role is excited by the opportunity to support people through some of the darkest times of their life and is passionate about encouraging people to find A Better Life Experience (ABLE). This person must have Project ABLE or FolkTime's Peer Support Specialist Training within six months of hire (we do train) and receive the certification within a year of hire.

This role can be difficult as our Peer Respite Support Specialists don't necessarily do "easy" and support some very heavy, emotional situations. Our PRSS will need to be able to hold a safe space while setting aside their own personal feelings during that time. 

Reports to:

Peer Respite Director

Why Join Us?

• Be part of a pioneering initiative in Oregon.
• Professional growth and development opportunities.
• Supportive and inclusive work environment.
• Make a meaningful impact on the lives of individuals in crisis.
• Be part of reforming our mental health system!

Specific Duties

• Offer encouragement, understanding, and hold space for the guests in times of crisis
  
  
• Be Flexible
  
  
• Welcome and orientate new guests, as they come to ABLE House
  
  
• Provide individualized, ongoing guidance, coaching, and support that follows ABLE House guiding principles and adheres to the accountability of staying true to the AH mission statement and vision
  
  
• Attend staff meetings
  
  
• Observe confidentiality relating to our guests
  
  
• Participating in staff training and development
  
  
• Administer evaluation forms and collect feedback from guests
  
  
• Always maintain professional standards and observe the guidelines established within the Code of Ethics and Conduct
  
  
• Provide support and model recovery to our guests and our staff
  
  
• Provide outreach support, if needed
  
  
• Provide support and advocacy
  
  
• Participate in co-reflection with staff
  
  
• Responsible for house maintenance, including the turnover of guest bedrooms, cleaning, laundry, etc.
  
  
• Support and coach recovering people to develop their own plan for advancing their recovery
  
  
• Demonstrate an ability to share personal recovery experiences and to develop authentic peer-to-peer relationships
  
  
• Maintain contact by phone and/or e-mail with the recovery person after they leave the program to ensure their ongoing success and to provide re-engagement support in partnership with others in the agency if needed
  
  
• Identify and support connections to community resources (communities of recovery, educational, vocational, social, cultural, spiritual resources, mutual self- help groups, professional services, etc.) that support the recovering person’s goals and interests
  
  
• Promote self-advocacy by assisting recovering people to have their voices fully heard; assist in developing a plan (if the guests choose) that establishes their needs, goals, and objectives as part of their stay at ABLE House
  
  
• Assist recovering people to identify their personal interests, goals, strengths, and weaknesses regarding recovery
  
  
• Reliability

We are a pet-friendly home with our own house cat, Able! 

Perform other related duties as assigned; including, supporting the feeding and maintenance of ABLE House's house pets (currently a cat and fish). 

Having a diverse and inclusive staff is essential for ABLE House to be a place where people feel safe and connected. For this to occur, ABLE House aims to have a staff of a wide variety of life experiences.

ABLE House also encourages, promotes, and empowers staff to have self-care. Come join us to make a difference!