Peer Support
Offering and receiving help, based on
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Shared understanding
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Respect
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Mutual empowerment
Between people in similar situations
Peer Support is Recognized as an Evidence Based Practice
Research suggests that peer support has a transformative impact on both individuals and systems. The data shows that peer support:
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Improves quality of life
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Improves engagement and satisfaction with services and supports
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Decreases hospitalizations and inpatient stays
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Lowers overall costs of services
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Improves whole health, including physical health
Peer Support Specialists
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People who have been successful in the recovery process and who have received training to help others experiencing similar situations.
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Through shared understanding, respect, and mutual empowerment, peer support workers help people become and stay engaged in the recovery process and reduce the likelihood of relapse.
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Peer support services can effectively extend the reach of treatment beyond the clinical setting into the everyday environment of those seeking a successful, sustained recovery process.
What do Peer Support Workers do?
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Inspire hope that people can and do recover. 1 SAMHSA Definition 2 Mental Health America
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Walk with people on their recovery journeys.
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Dispel myths about what it means to have a mental health condition or substance use disorder.
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Provide self-‐help education and link people to tools and resources; and
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Support people in identifying their goals, hopes, and dreams, and creating a roadmap for getting there.
Peer Respite Centers
A peer respite is a voluntary, short-term, overnight program that provides communitybased, non-clinical crisis support to help people find new understanding and ways to move forward. It operates 24 hours per day in a homelike environment. Successful peer respites are currently operating in California, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and Wisconsin.
A directory of Peer Respite Centers
