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Introducing Peer Workers into mental health services: An organizational toolkit
Summary
Developed a set of tools designed to bring key stakeholders together ? existing peer workers, the people that will benefit from peer support, the staff peer workers will work alongside and managers at all levels in partner organisations ? to engage in the planning and decision?making that will give rise to that crucial sense of shared expectation of the peer worker role. The tools are a resource that can be used as part of a consultation process, within peer support working groups or partnership boards, or in any other forum where a range of stakeholders come together to consider, plan and make decisions about the introduction of new peer worker roles.
Key Findings
Key findings related to emerging/promising principles for engaging PWLLE:
The sharing of lived experience is a very personal process that ultimately each individual peer worker is in control of how they use their lived experience in their work. The function of the peer worker role should be sufficiently and clearly different from other roles in mental health service teams in order that the distinctiveness of the role is not eroded over time. Differential knowledge and skills peers bring to their work should be respected and actively enabled to flourish – this includes wage parity. New peer worker roles should be developed in partnership by the full range of stakeholders involved so that expectations of the function and values underpinning the role are shared. It is especially important that colleagues and managers in multidisciplinary teams share expectations of the role (teams need training and preparing too).
Key findings related to emerging/promising practices for engaging PWLLE:
At the heart of the peer worker role is the building of relationships based on shared lived Experience. Working in this way is demanding and potentially impacts on peer worker wellbeing. Training, supervision and support for peer workers should be tailored to the specific function, expectations and setting of each peer worker role (and should be sufficiently funded to be effective). The provision of reasonable adjustments in peer workers’ working terms and conditions should serve to enable access to the workplace for people with lived experience of mental health problems.
Key Findings Related Implementation Approaches:
Peer workers should be employed within services and teams to prevent isolation and to provide opportunities for peer support. This should include formal provision of peer support spaces. Remuneration for the peer worker role – and provision of opportunities for career development – should properly reflect the value of the work that peers do. Provider organisations employing peer workers should be sufficiently flexible and open to change to work with the challenge to organisational culture that the introduction of peer workers invites.
