Eating Disorders Lived Experience Worker-Consumer

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• Fantastic Opportunity to Join our Specialist Eating Disorders Team at Austin Health
• Consumer Peer Worker Level 2  
• Two part time roles available at 22.8 hours per week
• Flexible working hours 
• Fixed term up to 30/6/27
• Purposefully Share Lived Experiences to Offer Hope and Support to Consumers within clinic and outreach settings 
• Multidisciplinary Team Approach to Care 
• Support Access to Mental Health and Community Support Services 

Austin Health is the major provider of tertiary health services, health professional education and research across three campuses in the north-east of Melbourne and statewide. We have a highly engaged, diverse and collaborative workforce that is unified by our goal to help people live healthy and fulfilled lives.

About the Mental Health Division:

The Mental Health Division provides care and services through a comprehensive range of teams to meet the needs of mental health consumers and carers throughout Victoria. Services are across Adult and Child and Adolescent and can be bed based or located in the community. 

All mental health services work within a clinical framework that promotes recovery-oriented practice and supported decision making. This approach to consumer wellbeing builds on the strengths of the individual working in partnership with their treating team. It encompasses the principles of self-determination and individualized treatment and care. 

This position offered sits within the Child and Youth Mental Health Service (ICYMHS) directorate and is located within the Specialist Eating Disorder Service (SEDS).

About the Role 

The Specialist Eating Disorder Team within Austin Health plays a crucial role in providing timely and effective assessment, treatment, and support to young people who experience Eating Disorders together with supporting their carers/ families. As a Consumer Peer Worker, you will be an integral and a highly valued member of the multidisciplinary team, offering mutual support and practical assistance to young consumers, empowering them to take control of their recovery journey. 

 A regular day will see you: 

• Share your lived experiences to offer hope and support to consumers, helping them feel understood and connected. 
• Work closely with service leaders and clinicians to ensure that care is person-centred, holistic, and responsive to the unique needs and views of young consumers and their families. 
• Support consumers to access mental health services and other relevant community resources to assist in their ongoing treatment and recovery.

About You 

As the Lived Experience Worker, You will be someone who has excellent communication skills, with a strong commitment to excellence in patient care. You’ll bring energy and drive to your work, and have a keen interest in developing your skillset.

You will bring: 

• Lived experience of mental illness or mental health challenges. 
• A strong understanding of the Victorian public mental health system. 
• At least 2 years’ experience working as a Peer Worker/Lived Experience within a mental health setting.  
• Recognition and understanding of your own recovery process and the ability to use this experience to support others. 
• Knowledge of peer support principles, with a commitment to providing support from a mutual perspective, sharing lived experiences to inspire hope. 
• A deep understanding of recovery-focused care and an ability to work from a strengths-based approach. 
• The ability to listen with empathy, helping people discover their own solutions and empowering them to take ownership of their recovery journey. 
• Willingness to participate in ongoing training and supervision as part of your role. 
• Effective communication skills and the ability to engage with consumers in everyday, non-clinical language. 
• A commitment to ensuring safe, best-practice care that puts consumers at the heart of the decision-making process. 

What You Need:

• Completion of Intentional Peer Support (IPS) training and/or Certificate IV in Mental Health or Mental Health Peer Work (or equivalent qualification). 
• Australian working rights. 

If you're dedicated to delivering compassionate, patient-centred care and want to make a real difference in the lives of young people, we encourage you to apply. Join us at Austin Health and be part of a dynamic team committed to transforming lives through mutual support, understanding, and recovery. 

Our benefits

Working at Austin Health means enjoying a strong sense of purpose, engaging in meaningful work every day. Our people also receive a variety of rewarding benefits, including:

•         Greater take-home pay through generous salary packaging, for living expenses, meals, and holiday accommodation.
•          A suite of wellness initiatives designed to support you, including discounted fitness memberships and special offers on health insurance, and a comprehensive wellbeing program.
•          Onsite childcare at Austin Hospital, easy access via public transport and car parking options.
•          Mentoring and career development opportunities.

Work with us!

We are committed to cultural safety and health equity for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander People. We celebrate, value, and include people of all backgrounds, genders, identities, cultures, bodies, and abilities. We welcome and support applications from talented people identifying as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, people with disability, neurodiverse people, LGBTQIA+ and people of all ages and cultures.

If you feel this role is right for you, we encourage your early application. Even if you don’t meet every single requirement, we encourage you to apply. What matters most is your passion, your drive and your willingness to learn and contribute. Applications will be reviewed as they are received, and interviews may take place prior to the closing date. This means we reserve the right to close a job ad prior to the advertised closing date.

All appointments are made subject to a satisfactory National Police Check and if required, a Working With Children Check. If you require any reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process, you are welcome to reach out to the hiring manager: Sandy Robertson, Program Manager, at Sandy.ROBERTSON@austin.org.au.

Interested in finding out more about this opportunity? Read the position description for further details.

Application closing date: 10 June 2025