Core Competencies for Peer Workers in Behavioral Health Services

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Core Competencies for Peer Workers in Behavioral Health Services

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Core competencies are the capacity to easily perform a role or function. They are often described as clusters of the knowledge, skills, and attitudes a person needs to have to successfully perform a role or job. Training, mentoring, and supervision can help people develop core competencies. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)—in conjunction with diverse subject matter experts—conducted research to identify core competencies for peer workers in behavioral health. The draft core competencies were posted online for public comment. The following document represents the final product of that process, which incorporated input from hundreds of people around the United States. As our understanding of peer support grows and the contexts in which peer recovery support services are provided evolve, the core competencies must evolve over time. Therefore, updates to these competencies may occur periodically in the future.

Core Competencies for Peer Workers in Behavioral Health Services