Key Features Of Peer Support In Chronic Disease Prevention And Management

Abstract

Peer support from community health workers, promotores de salud, and others through community and health care organizations can provide social support and other assistance that enhances health. There is substantial evidence for both the effectiveness and the cost-effectiveness of peer support, as well as for its feasibility, reach, and sustainability. We discuss findings from Peers for Progress, a program of the American Academy of Family Physicians Foundation, to examine when peer support does not work, guide dissemination of peer support programs, and help integrate approaches such as e-health into peer support. Success factors for peer support programs include proactive implementation, attention to participants' emotions, and ongoing supervision. Reaching those whom conventional clinical and preventive services too often fail to reach; reaching whole populations, such as people with diabetes, rather than selected samples; and addressing behavioral health are strengths of peer support that can help achieve health care that is efficient and of high quality. Challenges for policy makers going forward include encouraging workforce development, balancing quality control with maintaining key features of peer support, and ensuring that underresourced organizations can develop and manage peer support programs.

Combining the High Tech with the Soft Touch: Population Health Management Using eHealth and Peer Support

“…4 In contrast to the eHealth model, peer support delivers highly personalized and engaging support to people at all levels of need. 5 Importantly, this includes the ability of peer support to (1) reach and engage those who are often ''hardly reached'' by clinical and preventive services, and (2) reduce emotional and psychosocial distress among those with chronic conditions and the avoidable acute and hospital care that so often accompany it. 5 Studies have documented the effectiveness, feasibility, and wide acceptability of peer support for chronic disease management and prevention in diverse settings and populations.…”

“…5 Importantly, this includes the ability of peer support to (1) reach and engage those who are often ''hardly reached'' by clinical and preventive services, and (2) reduce emotional and psychosocial distress among those with chronic conditions and the avoidable acute and hospital care that so often accompany it. 5 Studies have documented the effectiveness, feasibility, and wide acceptability of peer support for chronic disease management and prevention in diverse settings and populations. 2,5 With the engagement of peer support and the reach of eHealth (and the effectiveness and feasibility of both approaches), we therefore ask: Can we integrate the high tech of eHealth with the soft touch of peer support to manage the health of populations?…”

“…5 Studies have documented the effectiveness, feasibility, and wide acceptability of peer support for chronic disease management and prevention in diverse settings and populations. 2,5 With the engagement of peer support and the reach of eHealth (and the effectiveness and feasibility of both approaches), we therefore ask: Can we integrate the high tech of eHealth with the soft touch of peer support to manage the health of populations? If so, what might such an integration look like?…”

Text-Messaging, Online Peer Support Group, and Coaching Strategies to Optimize the HIV Prevention Continuum for Youth: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

“…Similarly, Simoni [95] did not find that in-person peer support groups enhanced ART adherence. However, a review published in 2014 found significant benefits of peer support interventions for other chronic diseases [96]. In a review of stress management interventions for persons living with HIV [97], peer support was a critical component of interventions.…”

A Qualitative Study of How Health Coaches Support Patients in Making Health-Related Decisions and Behavioral Changes

“…1,2 Coaches focus on helping patients to identify goals, create plans to make changes, and implement changes. Although health coaching can be performed by licensed professionals including nurses, physical therapists and respiratory therapists, 3,4 or by other patients (peer support), [5][6][7][8] medical assistants 1,9,10 and other unlicensed health workers (eg, community health workers, lay health advisers, and promotoras) [11][12][13][14][15][16] are emerging as a common and relatively economical workforce that may meet the demand for self-management support. Health coaching has been proposed as an inexpensive and effective means to improve control of chronic conditions 1 and has been effective in improving management of diabetes and other risk factors for cardiovascular disease, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.…”