Australian consumer perceptions of peer support

Abstract

Introduction: Peer support in mental health service delivery is a relatively new development in Western Australia, occurring only in the last decade. Consequently, what is known about peer support in mental health has been largely drawn from the overseas literature. The purpose of the present study was to identify how consumers of mental health services in Western Australia viewed the impact that peer support workers had on their life.

Methods: The nominal group technique was the method used to collect and analyze the data from nine participants living in the community who were supported by a peer support worker; the role of the peer support worker was to encourage healthy lifestyle behaviors.

Results: The results indicate that the main influences of a peer worker for consumers were motivation, increased social interaction, living a healthier lifestyle, positive mental attitude and building confidence.

Discussion: It was concluded that participants viewed the support they received as a positive experience, which contributed to building confidence and enabled participants to make lifestyle changes. However, the results need to be viewed with caution, not only because of the small sample size, but also because the peer workers and the participants were all male. Results may well be different where the role and gender of the support worker and consumer are different.

Keywords: consumer; health status; healthy lifestyle; peer mentor; peer support.