Peer Specialist LGBTQIA &MH Cl

About Us

We’re Maimonides Health, Brooklyn’s largest healthcare system, serving over 250,000 patients each year through the system’s 3 hospitals, 1800 physicians and healthcare professionals, more than 80 community-based practices and outpatient centers. At Maimonides Health, our core values H.E.A.R.T drives everything we do. We uphold and maintain Honesty, Empathy, Accountability, Respect, and Teamwork to empower our talented team, engage our respective communities and adhere to Planetree's philosophy of patient-centered care. The system is anchored by Maimonides Medical Center, one of the nation’s largest independent teaching hospitals and home to centers of excellence in numerous specialties; Maimonides Midwood Community Hospital (formerly New York Community Hospital), a 130-bed adult medical-surgical hospital; and Maimonides Children's Hospital, Brooklyn's only children's hospital and only pediatric trauma center. Maimonides' clinical programs rank among the best in the country for patient outcomes, including its Heart and Vascular Institute, Neuroscience Institute, Boneand Joint Center, and Cancer Center. Maimonides is an affiliate of Northwell Health and a major clinical training site for SUNY Downstate College of Medicine.
Overview

The Peer Specialist provides emotional support, mentorship, advocacy, and resource navigation for LGBTQIA+ individuals experiencing mental health challenges. Peer Specialists use their lived experience to foster hope, reduce stigma, and empower clients in their recovery journey. They work closely with clinicians and case managers to ensure holistic and patient-centered care.

Responsibilities

• Provide one-on-one and group-based peer support to LGBTQIA+ patients.
• Utilize lived experience to provide guidance, encouragement, and empowerment to LGBTQIA+ individuals.
• Facilitate peer support groups on topics such as identity affirmation, navigating healthcare, self-advocacy, and coping strategies.
• Assist clients in accessing community resources, including housing, legal services, healthcare, and social support.
• Provide education and advocacy on LGBTQIA+ mental health, self-care, harm reduction, and wellness strategies.
• Offer guidance and support to help patients navigate gender-affirming care, including referrals to appropriate services and providers.
• Collaborate with therapists, social workers, psychiatrists, and case managers as part of a multidisciplinary care team to provide trauma-informed, recovery-oriented care.
• Support crisis intervention efforts by connecting patients with appropriate resources and offering emotional support.
• Participate in staff meetings, trainings, clinic initiatives as requested to improve LGBTQIA+ mental health services.
• Document all services and interactions in the electronic medical record in a timely and accurate manner. in accordance with clinic policies.

Qualifications

Education:

• Certification and Completion of a Peer Specialist Training through an approved training program (e.g., OMH- or OASAS-recognized), required.

Experience:

• Lived experience with mental health challenges, substance use recovery, or navigating systems of care as an LGBTQIA+ individual.
• Minimum of (1) year experience of working in a peer support role preferred.

Skills:

• Strong understanding of LGBTQIA+ identities, community resources, and the impact of minority stress and trauma.
• Ability to provide nonjudgmental, strengths-based and recovery-oriented support to diverse patients.
• Experience with group facilitation, crisis intervention, or community engagement is a plus.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills. (Bilingual speaking is preferable, not mandatory.) 
• Commitment to equity, inclusion, and culturally responsive care.

Pay Range

USD $40,000.00 - USD $48,750.00 /Yr.
Equal Employment Opportunity Employer

Maimonides Medical Center (MMC) is an equal opportunity employer.