Peer Specialists play a distinct role within the work of the OnTrackNY team. They are not clinical in their approaches or thinking. Instead, Peer Specialists are skilled at using Mutuality & Reciprocity and their Lived & Living Experience in supporting Participants as they strive toward their goals for their lives.

The Peer Specialist role that exists today throughout North America initially grew out of a human rights movement for change in the mental health system. It stands on the shoulders of the 12-Step Recovery Movement, the Civil and Disability Rights Movements, and many other movements of socially devalued people that have recognized the importance of community support, the need for shifting language and culture, and the power of working together towards common goals. While the Peer Specialist position has developed into a professional role, it remains defined by a connection to a larger, tactically diverse movement for Self-Determination, social justice, and creative systems change among people who have historically been devalued and marginalized.

OnTrackNY is a team-based mental health treatment program that empowers young people to make meaning of their experiences and to pursue their goals for school, work, and relationships. We support the well-being of young people across New York State who are impacted by unexpected changes in their thinking and perceptions. Equity, inclusion, rapid access, and Self-Determination are at the core of everything we do.

Within the OnTrackNY model, the work of Peer Specialists is an important element of the team approach. At OnTrackNY - Peer Support is a crucial element! There are many ways Peer Specialists use their skills within their multidisciplinary team, with Participants and Family, and in the community.

Explore Peer Specialist resources below, or visit the Careers page to check for open opportunities.

OnTrackNY Specific:

• OnTrackNY Peer Specialist Manual
• Participant & Peer Specialist Agreement
• OnTrack Maps Workbook
• Transformation Timeline
   

Supervision Checklists:

• Peer Specialist Version
• Team Leader Version
   

General:

• Hearing Voices Network
• Recovery Library
• TMAPS

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