SCRANTON — The Wright Center for Community Health completed a unique program to improve mental health treatment across the region with a $300,000 grant from the Moses Taylor Foundation.

The Wright Center offers a wide range of mental and behavioral health services to help people of all ages address emotional challenges.

The Moses Taylor Foundation grant supported the establishment of an integrated peer support service line that encompasses mental health and whole-person primary health services. It also provided training for individuals seeking to become certified peer specialists, expanding the number of professionals available to support patients while reducing the financial burden that often acts as an obstacle to obtaining training and certification for the position.

Certified peer specialists are individuals who live with or have lived with a mental health condition, complete an approved course of training in peer support services, and pass an exam administered by the Pennsylvania Certification Board to earn their certification. In total, 20 people completed the two-week class hosted by The Wright Center and are preparing to take the certification exam. An additional 10 individuals — many from community partner organizations that offer peer services — have completed supervisor training.

• “This training opportunity is rare in Northeast Pennsylvania, even though the demand for mental health services is high,” said Shannon Osborne, the manager of enterprise trauma-competent wellness initiatives at The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education.

• “Training more certified peer specialists will enhance our behavioral health services, which will be a great addition to our fully integrated, whole-person primary health services,” said Lou Strazzeri, director of behavioral health integration, social and case management services, and supervisor of certified peer support specialists.

• Scott Constantini, associate vice president of primary care and recovery services integration at The Wright Center for Community Health, added, “This grant will help us and our community partners expand our workforce and increase access to much-needed mental health peer services throughout Northeast Pennsylvania.”

These in-demand professionals draw on their lived experience with mental health recovery to offer support and assistance to others in their recovery and community integration or reintegration process.

For more information, visit TheWrightCenter.org or call 570-230-0019.