142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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Qualitative and quantitative measures to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the Peer Support Program at Delaware Psychiatric Center

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Monday, November 17, 2014

Danielle Hinchey, MPH , Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement Department, Delaware Psychiatric Center, New Castle, DE
Kris Fraser, MPH , Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement Department, Delaware Psychiatric Center, Wilmington, DE
Dealing with depression and a drug problem has not been easy. I have seen doctors and psychologist but nothing has seemed to quite work as good as I hoped. I am now at my wits end and I cannot bear to think of dealing with this issue for the next 10 years. I sat in an office of a mental health clinic and waited for someone to assist me and just as I shifted in my seat a young woman who looked about my age smiles, holds her hand out to me and says, “Hi, I’m Sally and I will be your peer supporter.”

Peer Support (PS) is a nascent, recovery-oriented model that has garnered significant attention within the mental health community.  PS has been defined by the fact that people who have similar experiences can better relate and can consequently offer more authentic empathy and focused advocacy.  PS offers a non-clinical vantage point, which is extremely crucial in helping people rebuild their sense of community when they have had a disconnecting kind of experience (Mead, MacNeil 2004).  Given that PS is a new model in the mental health community, evaluative performance measures have yet to be standardized and widely implemented.  In an effort to accurately assess performance, the Performance Improvement Department at Delaware Psychiatric Center has developed qualitative and quantitative measures to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the Peer Support Program in a standardized manner.

Learning Areas:

Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Other professions or practice related to public health
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Program planning
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of a peer support program.

Keyword(s): Mental Health, Quality Improvement

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am qualified to speak about Mental Health performance measures because of my education and job experience. I have my Masters of Public health and have been working in a psychiatric hospital for over two years. I am qualified to discuss qualitative and quantitative performance measures for Delaware Psychiatric Center's Peer Support department given that I am the Quality Assurance Administrator at Delaware Psychiatric Center.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3207.0: Research Perspectives on Mental Health and Mental Illness: POSTER 2