firsthand Health Inc

Peer Counselor

Posted 3 Days Ago

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Spokane, WA

In-Office

Entry level

Healthtech • Information Technology • Social Impact • Software • App development

We help individuals with serious mental illness engage with behavioral health, social supports and healthcare.

The Role

The Peer Counselor supports individuals with serious mental illness by providing outreach, scheduling appointments, and advocating for their needs, while fostering trust and personal recovery goals.

Summary Generated by Built In

firsthand supports individuals living with SMI (serious mental illness). Our holistic approach includes a team of peer recovery specialists, benefits specialists and clinicians. Our teams focus on meeting each individual where they are and walking with them side by side as a trusted guide and partner on their journey to better health.

firsthand's team members use their lived experience to build trust with these individuals and support them in reconnecting to the healthcare they need, while minimizing inappropriate healthcare utilization. Together with our health plan partners, we are changing the way our society supports those most impacted by SMI.

We are cultivating a team of deeply passionate problem-solvers to tackle significant and complex healthcare challenges with us. This is more than a job—it's a calling. Every day, you will engage in work that resonates with purpose, gain wisdom from motivated colleagues, and thrive in an environment that celebrates continuous learning, creativity, and fun.

We named our company firsthand because we believe that lived, or “firsthand,” experience is invaluable for gaining trust and building meaningful relationships. While we are listing this role externally as Recovery Peer Specialist—a widely recognized term—internally we refer to this important role as firsthand Guide (fG). In our peer-led model, fGs play a critical role in outreach and engagement, supporting individuals living with SMI to achieve and maintain both behavioral and physical wellness. Trust is at the heart of everything we do, and fGs are uniquely empowered to connect with people who have disengaged from—or never accessed—the services and supports that can improve their quality of life. This role carries the expertise of a Recovery Peer Specialist, but with our distinctive approach and mission woven into every interaction.

The fG partners closely with other members of the firsthand Care Team to drive whole health wellness. This includes working closely with clinicians and other support team members to ensure individuals get the support they need. fGs act as the point of contact for individuals, helping them schedule appointments, advocate for their needs and set and achieve goals.

As a fG, you will:

Conduct community outreach to individuals with SMI in homes, community locations, and care settings like shelters, hospitals, and emergency departments
Support individuals health needs by scheduling appointments, taking vitals, ensuring clinical visits are attended and completed, and assisting with telehealth access
Build trust and relationships by addressing immediate needs and empowering individuals to identify and pursue personal recovery goals
Serve as the primary point-of-contact, using advanced engagement techniques to facilitate ongoing connection and engagement in supportive services
Help address social determinants of health, facilitating access to benefits, resources, and transportation
Assist with care coordination, advocating for individual goals, accompanying individuals to appointments, and addressing post-discharge needs
Provide timely and thorough documentation of encounters and participate in case reviews and team collaboration
Perform initial and ongoing telephonic outreach
Participate in ongoing training and professional development
Understand that as firsthand learns and grows, your role will constantly evolve. This job description represents many key elements of this role, but they are subject to change

fGs should have:

Empathy, compassion, and approachability
Excellent listening, communication, and interpersonal skills
Personal knowledge of recovery
Patience, persistence and a desire to help individuals experiencing SMI and/or SUD on their wellness journey
Comfort working collaboratively within multidisciplinary team
Basic proficiency with smartphone and computer technology

The required experience you bring to this role includes:

Lived experience with SMI and/or SUD
Recovery Peer Specialist certification, or eligibility and willingness to obtain certification within six (6) months of employment
Valid driver’s license in good standing, with the ability to operate a vehicle (company vehicle may be provided) and eligibility to drive under the company’s insurance policy
Demonstrated proficiency with technical tools like email, messaging services, and apps
Two (2) years demonstrated recovery time from a mental health and/or substance abuse disorder at the date of application
Team members will complete a paid training period prior to serving individuals and must pass assessments to move forward.
High proficiency in Spanish preferred but not required

Bonus points for:

Experience with direct in-person outreach and engagement for individuals with SMI and SUD
Expertise in recovery education and coaching
Understanding of whole health and trauma-informed approaches to peer support
Familiarity with local community resources, behavioral health systems, and the criminal justice system (e.g., mental health and drug courts)
Eagerness to expand knowledge about a broad range of health conditions
Interest in gaining a Community Health Worker (CHW) Credential after hire, or already holds one

Physical Requirements:

While performing the essential duties of this job, employees are required to frequently stand, sit, walk, crouch and use their hands to type, feel, handle and pick up objects
Employees are occasionally required to climb stairs and balance; reach with their arms; stoop, bend, kneel, and lift up to 15 pounds
Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions

Benefits

For full-time employees, our compensation package includes base, equity (or a special incentive program for clinical roles) and performance bonus potential. Our benefits include physical and mental health, dental, vision, 401(k) with a match, 16 weeks parental leave for either parent, 15 days/year vacation in your first year (this increases to 20 days/year in your second year and beyond), and a supportive and inclusive culture.

Vaccination Policy

Employment with firsthand is contingent upon attesting to medical clearance requirements, which include, but may not be limited to: evidence of vaccination for/immunity to COVID-19, Hepatitis B, Influenza, MMR, Chickenpox, Tetanus and Diphtheria. All employees of firsthand are required to receive these vaccinations on a cadence/frequency as advised by the CDC, whereas not otherwise prohibited by state law.

New hires may submit for consideration a request to be exempted from these requirements (based on a valid religious or medical reason) via forms provided by firsthand. Such requests will be subject to review and approval by the Company, and exemptions will be granted only if the Company can provide a reasonable accommodation in relation to the requested exemption. Note that approvals for reasonable accommodations are reviewed and approved on a case-by-case basis and availability of a reasonable accommodation is not guaranteed.

Unfortunately, we are not able to offer sponsorship at this time.

Top Skills

Computer Technology

Smartphone Technology

What the Team is Saying

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The Company

HQ: New York, NY

380 Employees

Year Founded: 2021

What We Do

firsthand is transforming the way individuals living with Serious Mental Illness (SMI) receive care. We are focused on delivering real outcomes for a cohort that has historically been underserved, stigmatized, and deprioritized. By building a service focused on whole-person care, firsthand aims to find, establish a trusting relationship with, and support quality care for individuals living with complex experiences of SMI. Most importantly, our goal is to be the trusted guide, partner, and first call for individuals we serve, guiding them to a life of stability and independence. In doing so, we will not only improve lives, but also improve the economics for managed care plans and states responsible for providing care to this community. This enables us to build solutions that scale and, as a result, change the way our society supports those most impacted by serious mental illness.

Why Work With Us

Our frontline colleagues bring lived experience with serious mental illness to their work- they’ve walked in the shoes of those we serve. They can build trust in a way many others cannot.

Much of our team has a personal connection to the mental illness space, and we come together from a wide variety of backgrounds to unite in this common mission.