Peer Support Specialist & CPST Specialist – Behavioral HealthJob Overview
We are currently hiring qualified and compassionate individuals for Peer Support Specialist and Community Psychiatric Supportive Treatment (CPST) Specialist positions to join our growing behavioral health team.
Applicants may be considered for Peer Support, CPST, or both positions, depending on their education, experience, training, certification, credentialing, and ability to meet applicable Kansas Medicaid, KDADS, payer, and organizational requirements.
These are community-based behavioral health positions designed to help individuals work toward greater stability, independence, recovery, and improved functioning in their everyday lives. Services may be provided in clients' homes, community settings, and other approved locations based on the individual's treatment plan and authorized services.
Peer Support Specialist
Peer Support Specialists provide recovery-oriented, strengths-based support to individuals experiencing behavioral health challenges. Peer Support Specialists use appropriate lived experience, encouragement, modeling, and recovery principles to help clients develop hope, resilience, self-advocacy, natural supports, healthy coping strategies, and increased community involvement.
CPST Specialist
Community Psychiatric Supportive Treatment (CPST) Specialists provide goal-directed, solution-focused interventions designed to help clients develop and strengthen skills identified within their individualized treatment plans.
CPST services may include skill development related to coping, emotional regulation, communication, problem-solving, organization, daily routines, independent living, community functioning, resource navigation, social skills, and other functional needs associated with the client's behavioral health condition and treatment goals.
What We Are Seeking
We are seeking individuals who are compassionate, dependable, patient, professional, organized, and genuinely motivated to help others succeed.
Ideal candidates should be comfortable working independently with clients in their homes and communities while maintaining professional boundaries and following individualized treatment plans, agency policies, documentation requirements, and applicable behavioral health standards.
Candidates should be able to build positive professional relationships while understanding that these positions require more than companionship. Employees are expected to provide purposeful, individualized services that support the client's recovery or treatment goals.
Responsibilities
Depending on whether the employee provides Peer Support, CPST, or both services, responsibilities may include:
- Provide individualized Peer Support and/or CPST services according to the client's authorized services and individualized treatment plan.
- Establish professional, respectful, and supportive relationships with clients.
- Help clients identify strengths, goals, coping strategies, and available supports.
- Reinforce healthy coping and emotional-regulation strategies.
- Assist clients with developing effective communication and interpersonal skills.
- Support development of problem-solving and decision-making skills.
- Assist clients with developing greater independence and personal responsibility.
- Support clients with establishing healthy routines and organizational strategies when appropriate.
- Provide community-based skill development consistent with individualized treatment goals.
- Assist clients with identifying and navigating appropriate community resources.
- Support development of healthy natural and community support systems.
- Provide modeling, coaching, prompting, repetition, skill rehearsal, and positive reinforcement when appropriate to the service being delivered.
- Encourage client participation and independence rather than completing tasks for the client.
- Maintain appropriate professional boundaries at all times.
- Communicate appropriately with parents, guardians, treatment-team members, supervisors, and other authorized individuals when applicable.
- Maintain confidentiality of all client information.
- Follow HIPAA, agency privacy policies, and applicable behavioral health requirements.
- Participate in required supervision, training, meetings, and continuing education.
- Maintain all required certifications, training, and credentials applicable to assigned services.
Documentation Responsibilities
Accurate and timely documentation is a major responsibility of both positions.
Employees will be expected to:
- Complete individualized SOAP/progress notes for every applicable service encounter.
- Accurately document the date, location, duration, interventions, client participation, client response, progress, and plan.
- Clearly document what actually occurred during the service.
- Connect interventions to the applicable individualized treatment-plan goal or objective.
- Document Peer Support interventions according to the requirements applicable to Peer Support services.
- Document CPST interventions as goal-directed, solution-focused, skill-building services when providing CPST.
- Complete documentation within required agency and payer timeframes.
- Utilize SimplePractice or the organization's designated Electronic Health Record (EHR).
- Maintain professional, objective, individualized documentation.
- Never falsify, exaggerate, copy, backdate, or document services that were not actually provided.
Minimum Requirements
- High School Diploma or Equivalent (GED).
- Must meet the applicable Kansas qualification, certification, training, credentialing, and supervision requirements for the service(s) the employee will provide.
- Must complete and maintain all required training and certifications.
- Strong verbal and written communication skills.
- Ability to complete professional SOAP/progress-note documentation.
- Ability to maintain client confidentiality and professional boundaries.
- Ability to work respectfully with individuals from diverse backgrounds and circumstances.
- Ability to follow individualized treatment plans and agency policies.
- Dependable attendance and ability to maintain scheduled client appointments.
- Ability to work independently in community-based environments.
- Ability and willingness to learn SimplePractice and other required electronic systems.
- Ability to receive supervision, feedback, and additional training.
- Must successfully satisfy applicable background, employment, and credentialing requirements.
Peer Support Position Requirements
Candidates seeking a Peer Support Specialist position must meet applicable Kansas requirements for providing Peer Support services.
Peer Support candidates should:
- Have qualifying lived experience appropriate to the Peer Support role.
- Be comfortable using lived experience appropriately and purposefully to promote recovery and hope.
- Understand recovery-oriented and strengths-based support.
- Maintain appropriate boundaries regarding personal disclosure.
- Meet applicable Kansas Peer Support training/certification requirements before independently providing billable services, when required.
CPST Position Requirements
Candidates seeking a CPST Specialist position must meet applicable Kansas Medicaid/KDADS and payer qualification requirements for CPST services before independently providing billable CPST.
CPST candidates should demonstrate the ability to:
- Follow individualized treatment plans.
- Provide goal-directed and solution-focused interventions.
- Teach and reinforce functional skills.
- Model and practice coping strategies with clients.
- Provide structured skill development rather than companionship alone.
- Accurately document interventions and client responses.
- Recognize the difference between CPST, Peer Support, case management, transportation, and other behavioral health services.
- Work within the employee's authorized qualifications and scope.
Preferred Qualifications
- Previous Peer Support, CPST, behavioral health, mental health, human services, or community-based experience.
- Current applicable Kansas Peer Support certification/training.
- Previous CPST training or experience.
- Experience working with youth and/or adults receiving behavioral health services.
- Experience providing services in clients' homes and community settings.
- Experience with behavioral health documentation.
- Experience completing SOAP or progress notes.
- Experience with SimplePractice or another EHR.
- Knowledge of Medicaid documentation expectations.
- Strong organizational and time-management skills.
- Experience supporting individuals with behavioral health or co-occurring needs.
Work Environment
These positions involve providing services in natural community environments. Depending on the client's authorized services and treatment plan, work locations may include:
- Client homes
- Community settings
- Agency/office locations
- Other approved service locations
Applicants should be comfortable traveling within the assigned service area and providing professional services outside of a traditional office environment.
Who We Are Looking For
We want employees who are:
- Compassionate
- Dependable
- Professional
- Patient
- Encouraging
- Nonjudgmental
- Organized
- Responsible
- Strong communicators
- Comfortable working independently
- Willing to learn
- Receptive to supervision
- Respectful of professional boundaries
- Committed to accurate documentation
- Passionate about helping clients become increasingly independent
Most importantly, we are looking for people who understand that meaningful behavioral health support involves working with clients—not doing everything for them.
Our goal is to help clients identify their strengths, learn practical skills, develop healthy supports, increase independence, and work toward meaningful recovery and treatment goals.
Position Information
Positions Available: Peer Support Specialist and CPST Specialist
Education: High School Diploma or Equivalent (GED)
Documentation System: SimplePractice
Work Setting: Community-Based / Client Homes / Office as Appropriate
Join Our Team
If you are passionate about behavioral health and want an opportunity to make a meaningful difference in people's lives, we encourage you to apply.
Whether you are interested in Peer Support, CPST, or qualify to provide both services, we are looking for motivated individuals who believe in helping clients develop confidence, independence, resilience, and the skills necessary to achieve their individualized goals.
Pay: $17.00 - $25.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Flexible schedule
- Mileage reimbursement
Education:
- High school or equivalent (Required)
Experience:
- Home & community care: 1 year (Preferred)
License/Certification:
- Certified Recovery Specialist (Preferred)
Shift availability:
- Day Shift (Preferred)
- Night Shift (Preferred)
Ability to Commute:
- Derby, KS 67037 (Preferred)
Willingness to travel:
Work Location: In person
