Frequently Asked Questions about the Certificate (FAQs)
Why is the Certificate important for Funders and Planners?
Why is the Certificate important for Service Providers?
Why is the Certificate important for Peer Support Workers?
How will service users and their families benefit from the introduction of this qualification?
What do Peer Support Workers do?
What will my staff learn from this course?
What experience does Mind and Body Learning and Development have in training Peer Support Workers?
What are the Course Modules?
How is the course delivered and what does it involve?
Is recognition of prior learning possible?
What are the entry criteria?
How does the course relate to recent Ministry of Health workforce development initiatives for mental health and addiction workers?
How does the Certificate relate to other New Zealand qualifications?
What is the cost of the course?
Why don’t you offer this course to individual fee-paying students?
Why is the Certificate important for Funders and Planners?
The Certificate in Peer Support (Mental Health) (Level 4) will satisfy the national policy requirement that all mental health and addiction sector staff who provide direct support services to clients hold an appropriate qualification. Funders and Planners can have increased confidence that Providers whose staff hold this qualification will provide safe, ethical and effective services. (top of page)
Why is the Certificate important for Service Providers?
The Certificate in Peer Support (Mental Health) (Level 4) will satisfy the expectation that all mental health and addiction sector staff who provide direct support services to clients hold an appropriate qualification. The Certificate assures Service Providers that their staff are competent to provide an effective, safe and ethical service. (top of page)
Why is the Certificate important for Peer Support Workers?
The Certificate in Peer Support (Mental Health) is the first training course developed to meet the needs of Peer Support Workers which is leads to a Level 4 New Zealand qualification. This news will enhance the profile and credibility of the Peer Support Worker role within the mental health sector.
Because of the important role of the employer in the practicum component of the course and in any assessment of the prior learning of practicing Peer Support Workers, we encourage Peer Support Workers to ask their employers to contact us directly. (We do not accept individual fee-paying students). (top of page)
How will service users and their families benefit from the introduction of the Certificate?
Service users and their families can have increased confidence that Peer Support Workers who hold the Certificate in Peer Support (Mental Health) (Level 4) are able to provide an effective, safe and ethical service. (top of page)
What do Peer Support Workers do?
Peer Support Workers are people with personal experience of mental illness, who work alongside service users to support their recovery. Mind and Body Consultants Ltd recently prepared a thematic review of peer supports for the Mental Health Commission: “Thematic Review of Peer Supports: Literature review and leader interviews”.
This course is a response to the growing importance of the Peer Support workforce and the evolving sophistication of the Peer Support Worker role. Until now, there has been no training available specifically for Peer Support Workers that leads to a New Zealand qualification. (top of page)
What will my staff learn from this course?
Graduates will have the knowledge, understanding and skills necessary to work effectively, safely and ethically as Peer Support Workers. Graduates in the Certificate in Peer Support (Mental Health) will:
- utilise strategies to engage meaningfully and work in partnerships with service users, and focus on service users’ strengths to support recovery*
- contribute to whānau ora for Māori*
- encourage and support families/whānau to participate in the recovery of service users and ensure that families/whānau, including the children of service users, have access to information, education and support*
- recognise that service users and their families/whānau are part of the wider community*
- challenge stigma and discrimination and provide and promote a valued place for service users*
- implement legislation, regulations, standards, codes and policies relevant to their role in a way that supports service users and their families/whānau*
- actively reflect on their work and practice and work in ways that enhance the team to support the recovery of service users*
- understand the philosophical and ethical foundation recovery-based peer support
- be able to apply cultural safety and biculturalism in peer support work
- understand and be able to apply the concept of promoting autonomy in peer support work
- understand the role of advocacy in peer support
- understand the role of peer support and how it relates to clinical mental health services
- develop individual and group communication skills
- understand the change cycle and how to facilitate change
- be able to identify safe peer support practices and demonstrate safe and ethical practice including use of external supervision
- develop the skills necessary to support and facilitate the recovery of peers
- develop the ability to reflect critically on their practice.
* These competencies are the “Real Skills” in Let’s Get Real: Real Skills for people working in mental health and addiction (Ministry of Health, 2008).
What experience does Mind and Body Learning and Development have in training Peer Support Workers?
Mind and Body Learning and Development Ltd is registered as a private training establishment by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) under the provisions of the Education Act (1989) and its subsequent amendments. The Certificate in Peer Support (Mental Health) is approved and accredited by the NZQA under the provisions of the Education Act 1989, and Mind and Body Learning and Development Ltd is accredited to teach it.
Mind and Body Learning and Development Ltd is the training and education arm of to Mind and Body Consultants Ltd, which has considerable experience as a successful provider of Peer Support Services and Peer Support Worker training. Since 2004, Mind and Body Consultants has provided Peer Support Services in Auckland city and now maintains contracts with the Canterbury and Waitemata District Health Boards. It is highly regarded internationally as a developer and successful provider of innovative Peer Support Services and rigorous training.
The combined experience, knowledge and skills of Mind and Body Learning and Development staff uniquely qualifies them to provide organisational learning and development programmes to other mental health organisations. (top of page)
What are the Course Modules?
- Philosophy and Ethics
- Legislative and Cultural Context
- Practicum
- Communication in a Team
- Implementing the Strengths Model
- Safety and Supervision
How is the course delivered and what does it involve?
The course is an 82 credit course of 820 hours duration. Each student has an individual learning plan. The theory and practicum components are delivered as follows:
Block Courses
- interactive workshops
- independent study
- assessments
Practicum
- on-the-job learning at your workplace
- ongoing feedback and assessment
- one-to-one supervision of learning, including observed sessions
Is recognition of prior learning possible?
Yes. Contact us for more information about recognition of prior learning for your staff. Top of Page
What are the entry criteria?
Applicants must:
- have personal experience of mental illness,
- have suitable personal qualities,
- be employed by an organisation which has contracted Mind and Body Learning and Development Ltd to provide them with this training,
- have literacy skills equivalent to level 3 on the National Qualifications Framework.
Entry is open only to trainees that have been selected by suitable employers.
Employers are selected for suitability by the Mind and Body Learning and Development Ltd management team. This is because of the demanding nature of the work, and the active role the employer must take in the practicum component of the course. It is important that the employer has the capacity to support the trainee through this part of the course, and that the philosophical approach of the employer is compatible with the approach taken by Mind and Body Learning and Development Ltd. (top of page)
How does the course relate to recent Ministry of Health workforce development initiatives for mental health and addiction workers?
Let’s Get Real: Real Skills for people working in mental health and addiction (Ministry of Health, 2008) is a foundation document for mental health and addiction workforce development. The Ministry intends that the framework be phased in over time, starting from late 2008. The Certificate in Peer Support (Mental Health) reflects the values embodied in Let’s Get Real, and the course competencies include the seven “Real Skills” in Let’s Get Real, as well as competencies specific to recovery-based peer support work. (top of page)
How does the Certificate relate to other New Zealand qualifications?
The Certificate in Peer Support (Mental Health) includes Unit Standards 13432 and 21924 from the National Qualifications Framework. Mind and Body Learning and Development is accredited by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority under the provisions of the Education Act 1989 to provide education and training based on these Unit Standards. This means that students who obtain these Unit Standards with Mind and Body Learning and Development can credit them towards other New Zealand qualifications, and that students who have obtained these Unit Standards elsewhere can credit this learning towards the Certificate in Peer Support (Mental Health) (Level 4). (top of page)
What is the cost of the course?
The cost of the course is $3,695 per student, excluding GST. You may be eligible, however, for a grant of up to $1,400 per student, provided by Mind and Body Consultants, Mind and Body Learning and Development’s sister company. This makes the cost per student $2,295, excluding GST.
Mind and Body Consultants offer this grant as part of their commitment to developing and embedding the Peer Support workforce in New Zealand and internationally. As part of their vision for a thriving consumer workforce leading the mental health sector, they want to ensure Peer Support Workers have access to an education and training course designed to meet the unique needs of their role.
The grant is for organisations, not individual students. To receive the grant, organisations must be approved by Mind and Body Consultants. Download the application form here.
The above costs apply for courses delivered in Auckland or Christchurch, the centres in which Mind and Body Learning and Development is based. We can travel anywhere else to deliver training, but the cost of the course will increase to cover our travel and accommodation. The minimum amount of students we can travel for is 7. (top of page)
Why don’t you offer this course to individual fee-paying students?
The course contains a practicum component, which involves the student’s employer taking an active role. We encourage Peer Support Workers to ask their employers to contact us directly. (top of page)
Print This Page