Hearing Their Voices: Engaging Certified Peer Specialists in Dialogues About Racism and Recovery

Certified peer specialists (CPSs) may be uniquely situated to help address inequities within the behavioral health system. However, CPSs and other mental health care providers often do not have opportunities to discuss their experiences with racism in the workplace. The Southeast Mental Health Technology Transfer Center and Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network offered the six-part Racism and Re-covery event series as a space for such discussions (N=356 participants). Participant responses on the Government Performance and Results Act survey (N=239) and supple-mental Qualtrics survey (N=213) identified potential actions at the individual and organizational levels for disrupting racism. The responses indicated that the series was a feasible and well-received model for engaging diverse participants.