Peer Worker-Supported Transition from Hospital to Home—Outcomes for Service Users

Nicola Hancock, Bridget Berry, Michelle Banfield, Georgia Pike-Rowney, Justin Newton Scanlan and Sarah Norris
Additional contact information
Nicola Hancock: Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown 2006, Australia
Bridget Berry: Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown 2006, Australia
Michelle Banfield: College of Health and Medicine, Australian National University, Canberra 0200, Australia
Georgia Pike-Rowney: College of Health and Medicine, Australian National University, Canberra 0200, Australia
Justin Newton Scanlan: Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown 2006, Australia
Sarah Norris: Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown 2006, Australia

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 5, 1-12

Abstract: Background: Transitioning from psychiatric hospitalisation back to community presents a period of heightened suicide, homelessness, relapse, and rehospitalisation risk. The Australian state of New South Wales established a state-wide Peer Supported Transfer of Care (Peer-STOC) initiative to enhance recovery-focused supports available during this transition period. Aims: To understand the impacts and outcomes of the Peer-STOC program on service users from three stakeholder perspectives: service users themselves, peer worker service providers, and other mental health workers and clinicians interfacing with the program. Methods: Qualitative data from 82 questionnaires and 58 individual in-depth interviews were analysed thematically using constant comparative methods and an iterative and inductive process. Results: All stakeholders described positive impacts and outcomes of the program for service users. These included: (a) a better, less traumatic inpatient experience; (b) felt understood, cared about and less alone; (c) easier to leave hospital; (d) easier to get back into life and daily routines; (e) built and re-established community connections; (f) gained new knowledge, strategies, and skills; and (g) felt more hopeful about my recovery. Conclusions: The Peer-STOC program had a positive impact. It enhanced people’s experience in hospital, eased their transition from hospital and assisted with people recovering community-based relationships, activities, and routines.

Keywords: co-production; peer support; recovery; discharge; hospital avoidance; lived experience research (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/5/2743/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/5/2743/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:5:p:2743-:d:759743

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().