Certified Peer Recovery Supporter

Responsibilities

• Establish supportive, nonjudgmental relationships with patients through shared lived experience.
• Demonstrate that recovery is possible by serving as a positive role model.
• Meet one‑on‑one with patients to offer encouragement, active listening, emotional support, and practical recovery guidance.
• Help patients identify personal strengths and recovery goals.
• Lead or co‑facilitate psychoeducational and peer support groups on topics such as Wellness Recovery Action Planning (WRAP), coping skills, relapse prevention, self‑advocacy, and recovery planning.
• Empower patients to participate in treatment planning and make informed decisions; help them voice concerns, preferences, and goals to the treatment team.
• Support patients in developing realistic discharge and recovery plans, linking goals to housing, employment, education, transportation, and community supports.
• Connect patients with outpatient treatment, peer support groups, recovery meetings, social services, vocational programs, and other community resources.
• Attend treatment team meetings when appropriate, sharing observations from a peer perspective while maintaining professional boundaries.
• Advocate for recovery‑oriented, person‑centered care.
• Demonstrate effective coping strategies, resilience, healthy communication, problem‑solving, and wellness practices.
• Document peer support encounters according to hospital policy, following HIPAA regulations, ethical guidelines, and CPRS standards of practice.
• Promote dignity, respect, trauma‑informed care, and patient rights; help reduce stigma surrounding mental illness and substance use disorders.
• Encourage staff to view recovery as possible for every patient.

Qualifications

• Current certification as Peer Recovery Supporter in accordance with OAC 5122.29.15.
• Official transcripts required for all post‑secondary education, coursework, or degrees listed on the application; must be submitted before a formal employment offer. Failure to provide transcripts within five business days of request results in disqualification. Transcripts printed from the institution’s website are not accepted. The Ohio Department of Behavioral Health reserves the right to evaluate the academic validity of the degree‑granting institution.

Skills

• Technical: Basic documentation, computer literacy, customer service, learning and development.
• Professional: Active learning, building trust, coaching, collaboration, critical thinking, customer focus, developing others, establishing relationships, goal setting, listening, motivating others, public speaking, teamwork.

Pay

This is an hourly, union‑represented position (OCSEA/AFSCME) with a base rate of $22.59 per hour. The role falls under the OCSEA Pay Range Schedule at step 1, with an opportunity for a pay increase after six months of satisfactory performance and subsequent annual raises.

Schedule

Full‑time, 1st shift: 8:00 am – 4:30 pm.

Location

Northwest Ohio Behavioral Healthcare Campus, 930 South Detroit Avenue, Toledo, Ohio 43614.

Agency Overview

The Ohio Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) employs over 2,800 professionals across inpatient hospitals, pharmacy services, prison systems, and a central office in Columbus. DBH values service‑oriented, collaborative, and innovative care, emphasizing a strong sense of urgency. As an Ohio Recovery Friendly Workplace, DBH fosters an inclusive, stigma‑free environment that supports employees in recovery and promotes wellness, second‑chance hiring, and recovery‑informed policies.