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Celebrating the Accomplishments of a Learning Community for Peer Support
Dear Peers for Progress network members and friends,
On behalf of the Peers for Progress staff, we would like to wish you happy holidays. Together, we have greatly advanced in promoting peer support as a key part of health, healthcare, and prevention around the world. In this issue, we feature a sample of resources as a way to celebrate what this learning community has accomplished during the year of 2011.
- Caution in generating from null effects of diabetes peer support interventionm- Rejoinder to a paper on the British Medical Journal online
- Peers for Progress and Grantees at the annual Society of Behavioral Medicine Meeting: Seminar on recruting, training and evaluating peer supporters and more
- Peers for Progress China Network and Summer Activities Highlights
- Chronic Illness Alliance Peers Support Network's Best Practice Framework
- Public Health - Seattle & King County's community health worker programs for ethically diverse families
To see what you may have missed, view Peers for Progress and Grantees' Presentations & Publications, Example Programs, and What's New.
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Community Volunteers Help Control Diabetes in Thailand
In an innovative attempt to address the lack of skills and support for diabetes self management, Sangaunprasit et al. (Peers for Progress grantee) trained Village Health Volunteers in Thailand, who have assisted in basic primary care since 1978, to provide practical, social and emotional support to those with diabetes in both rural and urban settings. This report (page 7) shares their experience, including key success factors and challenges . [Read the report]
Peer Supporters Work Hand in Hand with Primary Care Teams to Meet the Needs in the War Zone
The Back Pack Health Worker Team (BPHWT) is a non-profit organization that has been delivering primary health care to rural and conflict areas in Burma for over a decade. Through partnering with local communities, it is able to transcend the physical and political barriers isolating the areas they serve, and train community members to deliver care and provide health education when professionals are not present. Peer support is intrinsic to the success of this innovative approach which provides sustainable and reliable primary care in conflict areas. [Read the report]
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Program Resources
mHealth cyber- seminar re-plays: Mobilizing cancer prevention and control
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) hosted a cyber-seminar regarding the role of mobile health (mHealth) in cancer prevention and care in November. The webinar features a discussion of current mHealth tools as well as promising directions and the role of HHS in mHealth technology. [Watch the re-plays]
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Research Briefs
Promoting Physical Activities Among Chinese Older Adults
Thomas et al conducted a clustered randomized trial using a two by two factorial design to test impact of pedometry and peer support (a.k.a. buddy) on older Chinese adults. While all three groups receiving interventions (pedometry and/or peer support) showed improvements in physical activity and fitness indicators, the groups with buddies also had additional improvements in mean aerobic fitness, reduced body fat, and the get-up-and-go test. (Med Sci Sports Exercise, Dec 2011) [Full abstract]
Lessons Learned from a Train-the-Trainer Program for HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control
The Train-the-Trainer Program was developed as a national tool for peer education to reduce transmission, address disparities, and encourage adherence to treatment regiments. Tobias et al share the results of a mixed methods evaluation of the program which lasted for a period of one year and trained 91 individuals to be trainers. The results of the evaluation indicate that faculty support in design and implementation, financial support, the teach-back/feedback model, and modeling of facilitation techniques by staff members were associated with better local trainings. One key factor that could be improved in future replications of the program includes incorporation of the trainers into the training team. (AIDS Patient Care STDS, Nov 2011) [Full abstract]
Forms and Functions of Peer Support for People Living with HIV
Peterson et al examine the function of peer support for patients with HIV across contexts to provide a succinct description of this topic. Results indicate that peer support is an important form of psychosocial support by assisting patients with coping skills. This suggests that programs working with this population should work to increase effective communication and support seeking behaviors, provide peer support opportunities, and assess the accessibility of peer support. (J Assoc Nurses AIDS Care, Nov, 2011) [Full abstract]
Mobile Peer Support in Diabetes
Chomutare et al discuss the prospects for mobile technology and social media in diabetes management and support, with an emphasis on design aspects such as health information acquisition. Their findings suggest that acquiring health information to model patient health status is a promising approach to providing mobile peer support.(Stud Health Technol Inform, 2011) [Full abstract]
Community Health Workers: A Public Health Force for Change in the United States
Balcazar et al discuss the emerging role of community health workers (CHWs) in light of the recent shift in medicine from “sickness care” to comprehensive care and the potential for them to become collaborative leaders in this new model. They recommend that CHWs be integrated into the medical home as part of the community health team and suggest that an improved evaluation framework could assist in assessing community wellbeing. (Am J Public Health, Dec 2011) [Full abstract]
More articles can be found at Science of Peer Support
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Funding and Dissemination Opportunities
APA Award to Promote Dissemination
DEADLINE: January 2, 2012
The APA is seeking nominations for senior researchers that have contributed considerable work in the field of behavioral science as it relates to psychopharmacology, behavioral pharmacology, or substance misuse. The nominee of the award must be a US citizen or based permanently in the US. This is a great opportunity to disseminate information on peer support as it relates to medication adherence and self management. [More info]
Comic Relief Grant for Mental Health
DEADLINE: January 7, 2012
Comic Relief of the UK is seeking proposals for programs that would empower patients with mental health issues with a special emphasis on patient led interventions. Ideally, proposals should demonstrate active patient involvement, address methods of reducing stigma, and increase the accessibility of mental health care. Applicants may only apply to one Comic Relief grant at a time. [More info]
Opportunities for Integrating Peer support with PCMH
DEADLINE: January 12, 2012
The Society of General Internal Behavioral Medicine award honors clinical practices that improve care within six of their quality indicators (safety, effectiveness, patient-centered, timeliness, efficiency, and equality). Special emphasis is placed on practices that promote the Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH) model of care delivery, which offers opportunities to integrate peer support. [More info]
NHLBI Community Health Worker Health Disparities Initiative
DEADLINE: January 13, 2012
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) has issued an RFP to identify and support Strategic Champions in developing training curricula for community health workers (CHWs) and expand successful CHW programs for heart health. [More info]
Research Call for Abstracts-2012 ICBM
DEADLINE: January 15, 2012
The 12th International Congress of Behavioral Medicine (ICBM) to be held in Budapest, Hungary in 2012 has opened up online application for abstracts. The theme of the 12th Congress Behavioral Medicine: From Basic Science to Clincial Investigation and Public Health will be reflected throughout the meeting through a variety of symposia, paper and poster presentations. [More info]
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