PEER SPECIALIST | MENTAL HEALTH LEGAL PROJECT

The Mental Health Legal Project seeks certified Peer Specialists to support and empower clients with lived experience with serious mental health diagnoses by helping clients develop psychiatric advance directives. Psychiatric advance directives are legal planning documents that form the basis of advocacy to enable clients to live the lives they want and need, meaningfully integrated into the community. The Peer Specialist will work under the supervision of an attorney and in collaboration with other members of the Mental Health Legal Project, as well as with attorneys in other practice teams whose clients have serious mental illness.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Develop and maintain a peer relationship with clients in order to identify issues related to the client’s long-term goals, mental health recovery, housing, employment, education, family relationships, and meaningful community integration;

• Work with the Mental Health Legal Project to address related legal issues, including public benefits, housing, employment, and disability rights, in a holistic approach to the provision of comprehensive services;
• Work with the client to obtain information to create a self-determination based psychiatric advance directive;
• In collaboration with Project staff, work to coordinate client’s cases and advocacy, ensuring the advocacy is based on the client’s needs and wants;
• Establish and develop relationships with community services and potential supports, including, but not limited to, the local mental health authority, law enforcement, community supervision, the housing authority, adult education services, community leaders, and religious communities;
• Establish and develop relationships with supports identified by the client, including, if appropriate, the client’s immediate and extended family as well as friends, mentors and other supporters; and
• Provide education and training in the recovery-based approach and peer services as appropriate.

Qualifications:

• Resourcefulness, creativity, initiative and drive, tact, and discretion; and
  Certified Peer Specialist.
  Preferred Qualifications:
• Lived experience in involuntary hospitalization; and
  Lived experience with psychosis.

TRLA is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

This position requires, consistent with TRLA’s policy and subject to applicable law, a candidate to provide proof of complete COVID-19 vaccination prior to commencing employment.