How do we do what we do?
Below, you can see some examples of how we approached this work within the various settings that we have experience working in. Keep in mind, that we always take on each project as a unique endeavour, making sure that our approach suits the context that we’re working in.
Community Organizations
When working with community organizations, we generally begin with needs assessments and consultations with all relevant stakeholders - participants, staff members, leadership and/or funders. From there, we combine the information gathered from these consultations with our knowledge of best practices for Peer Support programs. We work to understand the capacity of the staff within the organization, and we’re able to help support the hiring and/or training of staff who will be working within these programs. We’re also able to support organizations with their grant applications in order to secure funding for Peer Support programming (and our services). We are able to draw from our database of evaluation practices for Peer Support programs in order to ensure these services are evaluated in a way that funders will be encouraged to continue to support these programs.
Educational Settings
When working with young adults in High School, University and College settings, we work hard to ensure that Peer Support programs are engaging, responsive to students’ needs, and we work to ensure that we’re capitalizing on the strengths of the students while complimenting the services available throughout the institution. We have experience of working both with health and wellness departments, and also with Student Unions/Clubs/Societies directly. We recognize that mental health challenges often become apparent during this age range, and we work to ensure that all risk related concerns are addressed when developing programs and training students in the provision of Peer Support services. We often draw upon our own database of evaluation techniques for Peer Support programs, and the YouthREX Framework for Program Evaluation for Youth Wellbeing.
Private Practice Clinics
We work with private practice owners and service providers from start to finish. We help clinicians understand how adding Peer Support services to their clinic offering can help to ensure that a wide range of folks feel comfortable engaging in their practice in general, and can help to make sure that folks are getting the support that they need, from the most beneficial perspective for them. We work with clinicians to understand the liability considerations involved with offering Peer Support services in these settings, we’re able to support the hiring and training of Peer Support Workers, the development of the Program Policies, promotions for potential clients, and help folks to understand best practices in terms of evaluating these service offerings.
Hospital Settings
We recognize the absolute need to ensure that lived experience is a perspective that is central to the healthcare system, and that Peer Support services are readily available to all individuals experiencing mental health challenges while navigating the health care system. We understand the bureaucratic circumstances of these settings and we have experience in navigating this in order to ensure that Peer Support services are available within Inpatient, Outpatient and Emergency Departments. We approach this work by engaging the hospital environment and helping other members of the healthcare team understand the Peer Support role and how it works to compliment the care provided in these settings. We are able to provide specific hospital focused Peer Support Training programs for staff working within these settings, helping Peer Support Workers understand the nuances of working as part of an interdisciplinary team, and we’re able to offer Community of Practice meeting facilitation, and Peer-Lead Supervision to staff working within these settings.
What People Are Saying
“Allison’s knowledge of all things Peer Support is unparalleled, and yet she is dedicated to on-going learning. Allison commits fully to every project she takes on; engages in meaningful collaboration with each partnering organization; and is as invested in their success as they are. I was lucky to have had the opportunity to work with Allison during our time together at Stella’s Place.”
– John Choi, Executive Director, Sheena’s Place
“Allison has been a great collaborator and has played a pivotal role helping us to train peer support volunteers with our Sunnybrook Department of Psychiatry Patient and Family Advisory Committee”
— Dr. Ari Zaretsky, Chief of Psychiatry, Sunnybook Hospital
“Allison Dunning has been on the forefront of the peer-clinical integration movement for many years and brings her own invaluable lived experience, professional expertise and background in program development into the work she does. I can truly say there is rarely a week that goes by that I do not recognize the need for peer support for the benefit of my clients. I have worked with Allison on many projects and she is an incredibly talented program designer who has successfully integrated peer programs into clinical and medical settings.”
— Heidi Sasek, Founder of KW Mental Health and Wellness
