Peer Specialists: Enriching the Crisis Continuum-View Presentation

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Video Summary

The SMI Advisor webinar titled "Peer Specialists, Enriching the Crisis Continuum," hosted by Alexia Wolfe, highlights the integration of peer specialists into crisis systems to enhance mental health care. This webinar, offering continuing education credits, discusses the significant role of peer specialists in the 988 crisis system, which encompasses someone to talk to, someone to go, and somewhere to go.<br /><br />Wendy Tigreen and Eric Eason, experts in behavioral health, underscore the value of peer specialists in various roles, such as crisis contact centers, mobile crisis units, and stabilization centers. These peers, with lived experiences, provide crucial support, instilling hope and promoting recovery. They also play vital roles in administrative tasks and direct crisis intervention, emphasizing trauma-informed approaches.<br /><br />The webinar covered how peer specialists reduce isolation, lower health expenditures, and enhance consumer satisfaction. Eason and Tigreen stressed the importance of bolstering peer integration by collaborating with peer organizations and defining clear, supportive roles.<br /><br />The session also examined the impact of peers in outpatient settings, highlighting their roles in crisis diversion, recovery plans, and prevention, thereby endorsing recovery-focused practices within the mental health crisis intervention framework.

Keywords

peer specialists

crisis continuum

mental health care

988 crisis system

behavioral health

trauma-informed approaches

crisis intervention

recovery-focused practices

outpatient settings