“Being There” vs “Being Direct:” Perspectives of Persons with Serious Mental Illness on Receiving Support with Physical Health from Peer and Non-Peer Providers

This study explored how people with SMI living in supportive housing perceived receiving support from peer and non-peer providers for their physical health. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 28 participants receiving a peer-led healthy lifestyle intervention in the context of a randomized trial in supportive housing agencies. Interviews explored participants ’ experiences working with the healthy lifestyle peer specialist and a non-peer provider who assisted them with health. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using strategies rooted in grounded theory. Participants viewed their relationships with peer and non-peer providers pos itively, but described differences in the approach to practice, power dynamics present, and how they identified with each provider. Participants described peers as process-oriented while non-peer staff as task-oriented, focusing on accomplishing concrete objectives. Each provider sought to boost par ticipants’ motivation, but peers built hope by emphasizing the possibility of change, while non-peer providers emphasized the consequences of inaction. Participants related to peer staff through shared experiences, while identifying the importance of having a shared treatment goal with their non-p eer provider. Overall, participants appreciated the unique roles of both peer and non-peer staff in supporting their health. Study findings have implications for integrating the use of peer-based health interventions to improve...

Source: Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research - January 21, 2021 Category: Psychiatry Source Type: research