Part-Time Peer Specialist

Housing Works; New York (NY); On-site; USD 42,000 - 56,000; Full time

Job summary

Housing Works is seeking a Peer Specialist to support the Hepatitis C Care and Treatment Program, funded by the AIDS Institute. You will use your lived experience with Hep C, substance use, homelessness, and/or the healthcare system to engage, support, and motivate clients through testing, treatment initiation, adherence, and cure (SVR).

You will work closely with the Hep C care team, harm reduction staff, and outreach workers to bring services directly to clients where they are, including those

Qualifications

• Familiarity with Hep C treatment
• Experience in syringe exchange, harm reduction, or HIV/HCV prevention programs
• Core competencies: empathy, non-judgmental approach, reliability, teamwork

Responsibilities

• Provide peer-based outreach, engagement, and support to clients who are Hep C positive or at risk.
• Build trusting relationships using lived experience to reduce stigma and increase engagement.
• Accompany clients through testing, linkage to care, treatment initiation, adherence and SVR testing.
• Offer motivational support to clients lost to follow-up or hesitant to engage using harm reduction.
• Support clients in overcoming social determinants of health barriers to treatment.
• Collaborate with Hep C care team, harm reduction staff, and outreach workers to bring services to clients.

Skills

Empathy

Relationship-building

Non-judgmental

Reliability

Teamwork

Bilingual English/Spanish

Job description

Benefits:

We have three comprehensive healthcare plans to choose from based on your priorities and budget. Housing Works covers most of the plan; you pay a portion, based on your salary. Staff begins accruing PTO immediately for a total of up to 30 days earned in the first year. We offer employees an educational benefit. This money is available for tuition loan reimbursement, tuition costs, and text books.

Overview:

Housing Works is seeking a Peer Specialist to support the Hepatitis C (Hep C) Care and Treatment Program, funded by the AIDS Institute. The Peer Specialist will use their own lived experience with Hep C, substance use, homelessness, and/or the healthcare system to engage, support, and motivate clients through Hep C testing, treatment initiation, adherence, and cure (SVR). This role is central to closing gaps in engagement and retention, particularly for clients who are unhoused, use drugs, or are otherwise disconnected from consistent care, and works closely with the Hep C care team, harm reduction staff, and outreach workers to bring services directly to clients where they are.

Responsibilities:

• Client Engagement & Support
  • Provide peer-based outreach, engagement, and support to clients who are Hep C positive or at risk, including those identified through internal primary care testing and community-based outreach
  • Build trusting relationships with clients using shared lived experience to reduce stigma and increase comfort engaging with the Hep C program
  • Accompany and support clients through the treatment continuum: testing, linkage to care, treatment initiation, adherence, and SVR (cure) testing
  • Provide motivational support to clients who are lost to follow-up or hesitant to engage, using harm reduction and client-centered approaches
  • Support clients in navigating social determinants of health barriers to treatment
• Program & Site Support
  • Work acrossHousing Works' clinic sites to support Hep C program enrollment and retention goals
  • Support integration of Hep C services within harm reduction and syringe exchange program settings, including telehealth-based treatment delivery for clients receiving services in those settings
  • Participate in community-based outreach efforts alongside the dedicated outreach worker to identify and engage Hep C positive individuals outside the existing Housing Works client network
  • Support annual Hep C Awarenes programming, including client presentations, interview-style storytelling from clients who completed treatment, and the annual celebrations for clients in and completed treatment
• Maintain accurate, timely documentation of client contacts, engagement activities, and progress in accordance with program and funder requirements
• Participate in team meetings and case conferencing with the Hep C care team, medical providers, and navigators
• Collaborate with internal programs (harm reduction, adult day health care, youth prevention services) and external community-based organization partners to support client identification and program visibility
• Provide feedback to program leadership on engagement barriers and emerging client needs to inform program improvement

Requirements:

• Familiarity with Hep C treatment
• Experience working within syringe exchange, harm reduction, or HIV/HCV prevention programs
• Bilingual (English/Spanish) a plus
• Core Competencies
  • Empathy and relationship-building grounded in lived experience
  • Non-judgmental, client-centered approach
  • Reliability and follow-through with a high-need, sometimes hard-to-reach client population
  • Comfort working as part of an interdisciplinary care team
  • Flexibility and resilience in outreach and community-based work

Housing Works was founded in 1990; With a long-term commitment to AIDS advocacy. Housing Works established New York State’s first harm reduction-based, OASAS-licensed outpatient drug treatment program. Other services include Health Home care management, behavioral health, and syringe exchange programs. A pioneer in the social entrepreneurship movement, Housing Works operates 10 high-end thrift shops in Manhattan and Brooklyn and a much-loved Bookstore Cafe in Soho. For more information, visit www.housingworks.org

Housing Works fights for funding and legislation to ensure that all people living with HIV/AIDS have access to quality housing, healthcare, HIV prevention, and treatment, among other lifesaving services.

Housing Works provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements. Housing Works complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. Housing Works also does not request prior salary information during the hiring process. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

This position is included in a bargaining unit of Housing Works’ New York City employees represented by a labor union known as the Retail Wholesale and Department Store Union (“RWDSU”). Accordingly, the RWDSU has the exclusive right to bargain over the terms and conditions of employment related to this position and this position may become covered by the terms of a collective bargaining agreement (a “CBA”) between Housing Works and the RWDSU

Equal Opportunity Employer

This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws.For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.