Last month, Central Oregon Community College in Bend launched a four-week-long training course for students to become certified peer support specialists. A peer support specialist is someone with lived experience and formal training to help others with recovery from substance use disorder or mental illness. According to a recent study by researchers at the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health, the number of certified peer support specialists would need to increase by nearly a third to meet the demand for substance use treatment services in Deschutes county alone.

This is the first peer support training course offered in central Oregon, according to COCC, and is aimed at helping to meet a growing need for mental health services and substance use treatment, especially in rural communities. Joining us are Jenny Cruickshank, an assistant professor of health and human performance at Central Oregon Community College; and Terry Rogers, who completed the peer support specialist training course and is the founder of Bible Street Ministry, a faith-based nonprofit helping people experiencing homelessness in Bend.