Urgent Care Peer Support Specialist - Newport VT

About Northeast Kingdom Human Services (NKHS)

Northeast Kingdom Human Services (NKHS) is a 501(c)(3) private, nonprofit Designated Agency serving Caledonia, Essex, and Orleans counties. Our mission is to empower individuals, families, and communities by promoting hope, healing, and support.

NKHS provides a wide range of community-based mental health, substance use, and developmental services to nearly 4,000 individuals annually. With more than 450 employees, we are committed to delivering high-quality, person-centered care across the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont.

About The New Front Porch Mental Health Urgent Care Center

The New Front Porch Mental Health Urgent Care Center in Newport provides a community-based alternative to emergency departments for individuals experiencing mental health or substance use crises. Our program emphasizes voluntary engagement, dignity, and connection, offering immediate support in a welcoming, non-hospital setting.

Position Overview

The Urgent Care Peer Support Specialist is an essential member of a multidisciplinary crisis team, providing voluntary, non-clinical peer support to individuals experiencing mental health, substance use, or co-occurring crises.

This role is grounded in direct lived experience and focuses on mutuality, empathy, advocacy, and respect for self-determination. Peer Support Specialists work alongside clinicians and other professionals while maintaining a clearly defined non-clinical role. This position does not involve clinical screening, assessment, diagnosis, or disposition decisions.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide non-clinical peer support through active listening, empathy, validation, and shared understanding grounded in lived experience
• Build respectful, trust-based relationships that support individuals in identifying their own needs, goals, and next steps
• Offer hope, perspective, and encouragement through intentional and appropriate self-disclosure
• Support individuals in understanding their rights and navigating urgent care and crisis services
• Advocate for individuals’ expressed preferences during interactions with systems and providers
• Assist individuals in identifying and accessing community-based resources and follow-up supports
• Support warm handoffs and continuity of care in collaboration with the broader care team
• Provide follow-up peer support, in person or remotely, as appropriate
• Document peer support services using agency-approved peer documentation tools
• Participate in team meetings, debriefs, training, and reflective supervision

Required Qualifications

• Direct lived experience with one or more of the following: mental health crisis, trauma, substance use, suicidality, hospitalization, extreme emotional distress, or navigating the mental health system
• Ability to use lived experience intentionally and ethically to support others
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to provide empathetic, nonjudgmental support
• Commitment to peer support values, including autonomy, choice, and mutual respect
• Ability to work collaboratively as part of a multidisciplinary team while maintaining a non-clinical peer role
• High school diploma or equivalent

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience in peer support, crisis support, harm reduction, or community-based support roles
• Training in Intentional Peer Support (IPS), trauma-responsive approaches, de-escalation, or related peer-based models
• Familiarity with crisis systems and community behavioral health resources

Salary & Benefits

• Hourly Rate: $21.25 – $25.97, based on experience
• 403(b) retirement plan with agency contribution and match
• Outstanding employee wellness program
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Comprehensive benefits package

Equal Opportunity Employer

NKHS is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace dedicated to pursuing and hiring a diverse workforce. We do not discriminate on the basis of age, race, religion, color, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin.