Co-designing peer support for AYA with LTCs
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Co-designing and piloting a community peer support intervention for adolescents and young adults with long-term health conditions
IRAS ID
354209
Contact name
Flora McErlane
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 8 months, 31 days
Research summary
Adolescence and young adulthood (AYA) describes the period of time from 14-24 years old, when a person moves from childhood to independent adulthood. This period of time represents a unique phase of human development, presenting challenges around transitioning from childhood to independent adult life.
For AYA with long-term conditions (LTC), developing independence brings additional challenges. AYA may struggle with taking medications regularly and attending hospital appointments, and are more at risk of mental health issues. Poor compliance with healthcare can result in acute flares of illness and contribute to poorer adult health.
For AYA with LTCs, access to meaningful peer support has been shown to reduce the likelihood of subsequent physical and mental health challenges. Peer support involves receiving information and support from someone with similar experiences, in-person or digitally, however exactly how AYA engage in this, and its usefulness with regards to health outcomes, is unclear.
A previous project across Newcastle Hospitals identified peer support and mental health support as priorities for AYA, however, clinical teams across Newcastle Hospitals report limited success with previous clinician-designed and led peer support interventions. Our projects aims to bring clinicians, researchers, and AYA accessing clinics at Newcastle Hospitals together to co-design and test a new approach to peer support. We plan to ask AYA service-users what good peer support should look like, using these ideas to develop and evaluate a peer support intervention.
REC name
London - Queen Square Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
25/PR/1185
Date of REC Opinion
16 Sep 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion