Families of persons with serious mental illness play an important role in the lives of their loved ones. In addition to being caring siblings, parents or spouses, they often function as caregivers and can be an asset to any mental health team to assure optimal benefit of treatment. A new workforce is emerging to support these families. Family peer support workers are persons with a lived experience trained to provide support to other family members who are caring for a person with a serious mental illness.

Join us every month for our Family Peer Support: An Emerging Workforce webinar series, which will expand upon concepts outlined in our Aug. 4 webinar. Speakers will outline SAMHSA-published competencies in peer support and explore how persons with lived experience as a family member, friend or other caregiver of a person with a mental illness can support others in a similar situation, and discuss the training needs of this emerging workforce.

Content is tailored to address needs within our four-state region — Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri — but all are welcome. Certificates of completion will be provided to viewers of 50% or more of the live webinars.