Youth Participation

Peer programs can be extremely valuable for young people and their families who experiencing their first episode of psychosis. In addition to directly supporting clients, they can also be important in the development and improvement of psychosis services, and can play a unique role in community education.

Peer Support

Peer support programs can provide the opportunity for young people to have contact with peers who have been through similar experiences, and are therefore a unique and important form of supportive intervention. They also allow trained peer support workers to develop their advocacy skills and confidence in describing their experiences.
 

Contact with peer support workers may also enhance a young person’s engagement with a service and be an avenue to receive ‘non-authoritarian’ information about psychosis and interventions to promote recovery.
 

Goals of peer support work described in the peer support literature include:

• Advising young people on how to negotiate the mental health system and what to expect in relation to services
• Providing information about what to expect regarding recovery from psychosis
• Improving self-esteem, and instilling hope through providing normalised, real life, and optimistic models of recovery
• Challenging stigma and discrimination regarding people with mental health difficulties
• Encouraging resilience in young people experiencing psychosis

Service Development

Youth participation in service evaluation and review can provide clinicians and managers with a unique insight into the strengths and weaknesses of their service provision, in addition to offering advice regarding effective and respectful clinical practise.
There is also a role for youth participation workers to be involved in the interview process for staff selection, increasing the likelihood that clinicians who are recruited are able to connect with young people.

Community Education

Youth participation can also be extremely valuable in community education and outreach. Activities can include providing education or workshops to schools, community groups, and professionals, in addition to media work, with the aim of reducing stigma in the community.

Follow this link to the EPPIC Youth Participation Program