Service providers’ perspectives on youth peer support: the importance of integration and oversight – an interpretive description study in British Columbia, Canada
Objectives Peer support in youth mental health settings holds promise as a developmentally appropriate and impactful initiative; however, research exploring implementation remains limited. To advance the field and strengthen future implementation efforts, the aim of the present study was to generate...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMJ Publishing Group
2025-08-01
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| Series: | BMJ Open |
| Online Access: | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/8/e094356.full |
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| author | Skye Pamela Barbic Courtney Devane Corey McAuliffe Emily Jenkins Kelli Wuerth |
| author_facet | Skye Pamela Barbic Courtney Devane Corey McAuliffe Emily Jenkins Kelli Wuerth |
| author_sort | Skye Pamela Barbic |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objectives Peer support in youth mental health settings holds promise as a developmentally appropriate and impactful initiative; however, research exploring implementation remains limited. To advance the field and strengthen future implementation efforts, the aim of the present study was to generate new understandings about how non-peer service providers working alongside youth peer support workers experience the peer support role in youth mental health settings.Design Guided by interpretive description and tenets of a research community partnership model, semi-structured interviews were conducted with non-peer service providers (n=11) across three integrated youth services centres in British Columbia, Canada, from August to December 2020. Data were analysed inductively using a constant comparative approach to identify and construct themes.Results Participants emphasised integration and supervision of youth peer support workers as essential for successful peer programming within integrated youth services, highlighting three interconnected themes: defining supervisory roles, envisioning role clarity and capacity and governance of youth peer support services.Conclusions Integrated youth services initiatives and peer-led agencies can play key roles—both directly and indirectly—to strengthen the governance and infrastructure of youth peer support. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-756d68cd1db041dea690877897da78be |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2044-6055 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | BMJ Publishing Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMJ Open |
| spelling | doaj-art-756d68cd1db041dea690877897da78be2025-08-20T03:39:28ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552025-08-0115810.1136/bmjopen-2024-094356Service providers’ perspectives on youth peer support: the importance of integration and oversight – an interpretive description study in British Columbia, CanadaSkye Pamela Barbic0Courtney Devane1Corey McAuliffe2Emily Jenkins3Kelli Wuerth4Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaSchool of Nursing, The University of British Columbia Faculty of Applied Science, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaSchool of Nursing, The University of British Columbia Faculty of Applied Science, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaSchool of Nursing, The University of British Columbia Faculty of Applied Science, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaFoundry, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaObjectives Peer support in youth mental health settings holds promise as a developmentally appropriate and impactful initiative; however, research exploring implementation remains limited. To advance the field and strengthen future implementation efforts, the aim of the present study was to generate new understandings about how non-peer service providers working alongside youth peer support workers experience the peer support role in youth mental health settings.Design Guided by interpretive description and tenets of a research community partnership model, semi-structured interviews were conducted with non-peer service providers (n=11) across three integrated youth services centres in British Columbia, Canada, from August to December 2020. Data were analysed inductively using a constant comparative approach to identify and construct themes.Results Participants emphasised integration and supervision of youth peer support workers as essential for successful peer programming within integrated youth services, highlighting three interconnected themes: defining supervisory roles, envisioning role clarity and capacity and governance of youth peer support services.Conclusions Integrated youth services initiatives and peer-led agencies can play key roles—both directly and indirectly—to strengthen the governance and infrastructure of youth peer support.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/8/e094356.full |
| spellingShingle | Skye Pamela Barbic Courtney Devane Corey McAuliffe Emily Jenkins Kelli Wuerth Service providers’ perspectives on youth peer support: the importance of integration and oversight – an interpretive description study in British Columbia, Canada BMJ Open |
| title | Service providers’ perspectives on youth peer support: the importance of integration and oversight – an interpretive description study in British Columbia, Canada |
| title_full | Service providers’ perspectives on youth peer support: the importance of integration and oversight – an interpretive description study in British Columbia, Canada |
| title_fullStr | Service providers’ perspectives on youth peer support: the importance of integration and oversight – an interpretive description study in British Columbia, Canada |
| title_full_unstemmed | Service providers’ perspectives on youth peer support: the importance of integration and oversight – an interpretive description study in British Columbia, Canada |
| title_short | Service providers’ perspectives on youth peer support: the importance of integration and oversight – an interpretive description study in British Columbia, Canada |
| title_sort | service providers perspectives on youth peer support the importance of integration and oversight an interpretive description study in british columbia canada |
| url | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/8/e094356.full |
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