Peer Talk is a short presentation to inspire, educate and spark conversations around innovative ideas, while sharing knowledge and fostering dialogue.
To receive 1.5 CEs for this session, you must attend all three Peer Talks. Partial CEs will not be awarded.
Peer Mentoring: The Power of Advocacy
This peer talk explores the power of advocacy and how peer mentors with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) can use their lived experience to create meaningful change. Participants will learn how personal stories and community connections can influence systems and support others on their self-determination journey.
Presented By:
Ray Schuholz – CPM
The Role of Peers in Supporting Collaborative Care and Health Literacy
In this peer talk, the presenter shares lessons learned from working as a pharmacy technician since the start of the COVID pandemic and how these insights strengthen her current work with peer support clients. This talk explores common barriers to psychiatric treatment, ways peers can empower clients to advocate for their needs, and strategies for improving collaborative care. Attendees will gain an inside look at the pharmacy counter, challenge myths about psychotropic medications, and leave with practical resources focused on health literacy, empowerment, and inclusive recovery pathways.
Presented By:
Marie Cherry – CPSS
Rainbow Recovery
The presenter will talk about becoming who they were in addiction, where their mental health stood, while trying to understand identity and sexuality and reaching their darkest emotional battle. From there, they turned inward and asked for help to take action in their life and move towards a healthier, productive and more fulfilling recovery. This peer talk will focus on how advocacy played a role in their personal journey in addiction and mental health issues, as they pursued to understand their identity in sexuality. This personal account will highlight how peer support advocacy can build connection, confidence, while assisting them in discovery of their needs and rights.
Presented By:
Blake Harvey – CPSS