This webcast is the first of a two-part seminar. It is designed as an introduction to approaches for supervising peers. It will describe three distinct areas of supervision which together can help peers to thrive in the workplace. It will include case examples consisting of issues that are common for peers working in the field of supporting clients: boundaries, confidentiality and integrating peers into the health care team.

This Webcast will help participants learn to identify strategies for recruiting and hiring peers including what qualifications to look for, how to conduct interviews, how to orient and train peers prior to working with clients, and how to introduce and retain peers as part of the health care team.

This webcast is intended for anyone interested in learning about the roles of peers in providing HIV care and treatment. Peers working in clinics and community-based organizations will discuss their work and activities with clients and HIV providers.

This webcast is the second of a two-part seminar (started in the Oct. 7 webcast) that will discuss supportive and clinical approaches for supervising peers in the workplace. Case examples will be discussed addressing issues such as managing peer-client relationships and transference/counter-transference. Participants are encouraged to bring case examples from their own organizational settings.

The Peer Education Initiative conducted a HRSA-sponsored webcast on December 16th, 2008 entitled “Models for Integrating Peers into HIV/AIDS Care and Treatment.” The webcast focused on three successful peer program models and touched on several topics including peer roles and responsibilities, program structure, recruitment and retention, supervision, support, challenges, and outcomes.

The PEER Center team presented this seminar at the US conference on AIDS, Sept. 18 – 21, 2008 in Miami Beach, FL. In this 3-hour seminar, trainers, including a former peer advocate, demonstrated how to build peer skills on adherence to HIV treatment, peer counseling, and navigating the health care system. Peer trainees discussed their experience and impact of participation in the session. Training developers reflected on the successes and challenges encountered in their training programs and their strategies for sustaining the program in their areas. The panel concluded with a presentation of methodology and results from a multisite evaluation exploring the impact of the peer training on participant’s knowledge and skills.

Here we share the lessons learned as PEER Center and Peer Education and Training Sites staff helped organizations integrate peer services to support clients living with HIV. The intent is to share ideas and approaches so program planners, policy makers, evaluators, consumer advisory boards, funders and organizations can integrate HIV-positive peers into HIV care and treatment within their communities. Four case studies describe the PETS/REC Initiative’s efforts to integrate peers into the care and treatment teams within specific organizations and communities.

Wednesday, November 17 2010 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. ETPeers living with HIV/AIDS play an essential role in engaging HIV-positive individuals in care and treatment. The unique nature of that role brings with it special considerations when integrating peers as part of the health care team. This Webcast helps participants learn to identify peer roles and responsibilities, develop training and supervision systems, and monitor and evaluate peer contributions to HIV services.