P2A047: Positive Impact of Peer Support - A Cornerstone for Building Community

Background: Pediatric healthcare workers (HCW) are exposed to adverse events in the clinical setting. Negative downstream effects are common for those who experience these events. Prior studies show peer support is valued by HCW. Many institutions have implemented peer support programs, including the University of Colorado’s School of Medicine - Department of Pediatrics. In 2018, a Peer Support Network (PSN) program was launched at Children’s Hospital Colorado. Over 4 years, 167 clinical faculty and staff have become trained peer supporters (PS). The PSN spreads across Colorado from Fort Collins in the North to Southern Colorado and supports more than 1200 pediatric faculty working in both inpatient and ambulatory settings. Literature on peer support has primarily focused on implementation. The few studies evaluating program impact on peer supporters (PS) found increased levels of burnout. Our study utilized a survey of peer supporters to describe the peer supporters’ experience, motivations, and barriers to engagement.

Methods: A web-based survey of PS was developed with input from program leaders, peer support champions, and a survey methodologist. Content was reviewed by a group of PS and via cognitive interviews. Survey questions included demographic information, reasons for becoming PS, perceived barriers for offering peer support, and the positive and negative impacts of participation for the PS. The survey was administered via REDCap to all 167 trained PS during the spring of 2022. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze results.

Results: Survey response rate was 73.7%. Respondents were primarily female (83%) physicians (73%) who had been in practice post-training for more than ten years (64%). Top motivators to become PS included interest in getting involved with well-being efforts, desire to contribute, and desire to help after observing struggling colleagues. The largest barrier to offering peer support was current workload, followed by discomfort reaching out to a more senior colleague. The most highly rated positive impacts of PSN by PS were the beliefs that PSN serves a greater purpose, makes a positive difference for someone else, and adds value to the organization. The most identified concerns were time constraints and a feeling that peer supporter skills were not being utilized frequently enough.

Conclusion: The overall experience of PS was positive, suggesting the benefits of peer support programs extend beyond the value to HCW experiencing adverse events. As such, we aim to improve accessibility and utilization of PSN for the greater good of our hospital community. Results underline altruistic tendencies among PS who are focused on a greater purpose over personal gains associated with their role. To recruit, empower, and retain these individuals, it is important for programs to develop strategies to manage limited bandwidth and the perceived seniority hierarchy. Further study is needed on burnout in those who receive support.