Peer Support Workers' Experiences of Supervision in Substance Use Services.

Abstract

Peer support workers are increasingly employed in substance use services, where they use lived experience to engage service users, instil hope and support recovery-oriented care. However, less is known about how peer support workers experience supervision in substance use settings. This study explored the experiences of supervision among peer support workers employed in substance use services. A qualitative design using a hybrid inductive-deductive analytic approach was used with 12 peer support workers from substance use services. Participants took part in qualitative interviews. Interviews were conducted online and data were analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes were developed: supervision as a space for emotional containment; supervision as role clarification; negotiating peer identity within professional systems; and the need for peer-informed and organisationally embedded supervision. Participants valued supervision when it provided safety, reflection, boundaries and recognition of the distinctiveness of lived experience work. However, supervision was experienced as less helpful where it was overly managerial, clinically framed or disconnected from the realities of peer work in substance use settings. This study contributes to the emerging literature on the peer support workforce by focusing specifically on supervision in substance use services. The findings suggest that supervision should not be treated as an administrative requirement only, but as a core implementation mechanism for sustaining peer workers, protecting role integrity and supporting recovery-oriented service delivery.