States Use Six Practices To Certify Competency Of Mental Health Peer Support Specialists

Six state public behavioral health systems that have implemented mental health peer support specialists (PSS) reported using a group of similar practices to certify the skills and competencies of PSS workers. A PSS worker, as defined by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA), is a person who has lived-experience and is in recovery from mental illness and/or addiction and who uses that “lived experience, plus skills learned in formal training, to deliver services in behavioral health settings to promote mind-body recovery and resilience.” The key practices are as follows: objective screening, in-person core . . .