The BEST program represents a concerted effort on the part of several state agencies to explore the benefits of integrating Supported Employment with broader statewide mental health services.
"They help you make important decisions about certain goals. And they help you figure things out about yourself. That's nice".
"What I’m saying that you have to--you can't just depend on one thing. You have to have other community supports. You respect the people, where they're at, and you try to help them walk through whatever they have to do, and empower them, help them walk to the point that they can do it on their own. There’s turning points for everyone".
"She [peer counselor] comes and checks on me on my job. She helped me learn to make requests on the computer for my schedule. I didn't know how to do that and had to work every Sunday. Now I get every other one off to go to church and have Sunday dinner with my family".
"[in another position] I was doing things for people instead of teaching them to do them themselves. Not that there's anything wrong with that. [However] I need to be able to help them change their entire life, not just a piece of it".
"One of our jobs is advocacy and teaching them to advocate for themselves, communicating their wants, needs, feelings. Because sometimes they're not communicating them at all or they're communicating them in an unhealthy way. And so it's giving them the chance to say what they need to say and get people to listen".
"I’m having a better quality of life because of my job. I’m not having to try to go to people for money or trying to live so much of the government assistance".
"He [vocational specialist] is still helping me to capitalize on advancement opportunities. When it was time to apply for a department manager job we re-wrote my resume AGAIN. We did some preparation for that interview, reviewing questions. If I have any problems at work or going sideways, I can always call Rob and say ‘hey this is what’s going on and he’ll help me deal with it. He helps me with job advancement counseling and also job retention.