Peer Support In Dialysis

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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Peer mentoring is an approach used to support patients through their experience. In the End Stage Kidney Disease community many patients find out about their kidney failure without warning. This study is designed to test the feasibility of a structured peer support program, specifically, patient uptake, engagement and patient and staff perspectives.

Official Title
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Peer Support In Dialysis: A Feasibility Study

Conditions
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End Stage Renal Disease

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Mentoring


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Mentor Patient Participants Inclusion criteria: Patients living with dialysis or kidney transplant, who volunteer to support other patients. Mentor participants agree to complete the CMS End Stage Renal Disease Network Peer Mentoring training program (https://www.kidneylearninghub.com/patients-peer-mentoring-program/ ) and follow the guidelines for participation in the program. Mentor Patient Participants Exclusion criteria: Age <18 years. Patient cannot communicate in English. Concerns raised by the clinical team that may expose the mentor, mentee, staff, or the program to risks, as identified by the clinical team and discussed with the principal investigator. Mentee Patient Participants Inclusion criteria: All incident (new) dialysis patients or their care partners, within the first three months of dialysis. OR Prevalent dialysis patients or their care partners identified by the clinical team to need peer support. Mentee Patient Participants Exclusion criteria: Age < 18 years. Significant physical or psychological health conditions (including cognitive impairment) that would limit the patient's ability to interact with the mentor, AND care partner not available or reachable to join the program. This criteria will be subjectively evaluated by the clinical team. Clinical and administrative staff supporting the program inclusion criteria referring physicians, the medical director of the center, social workers, nurses, patient care technicians (PCT), certified clinical hemodialysis technicians (CCHT), and administrative staff. Support staff are those who interact with mentors or mentees as part of their routine work. Formally participate in supporting the program by identifying candidates, introducing them to the program, or providing them with support.

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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No

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
Intervention Model: Single Group Assignment
Interventional Model Description: We aim to conduct the study over 6 to 12 months to obtain enough experience to enable feasibility evaluation. Mentor pool sample size: We anticipate having about 10 patients in the mentors' pool during the study period. Mentee sample size: We anticipate approaching between 20 to 30 dialysis patients over the study period. Supporting team: All members of the supporting staff will be invited to participate.
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: Mentee<br>Participants will be approached by a mentor, exchange experiences and invite the prospective mentee to the program. Those interested to continue will undergo matching based on their desired criteria. | Behavioral: Mentoring<br>* At least one meeting between the mentor and mentee will occur to share experiences and see if the mentee would like to continue meeting with a mentor<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mentor | Number of patients registering to become mentors, percent of those registered completing mentor training and percent of trained mentors who meet at least one mentee. | 6 - 12 months | 
| Mentee | Number and proportion of patients starting dialysis, or prevalent dialysis patients identified by the clinical team to need peer support, who receive an introductory peer mentor visit. Number and % of mentees who indicate interest to continue with more peer mentoring visits. | 1 month | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mentor Perspectives | Evaluation of recruitment, training and program. Data collection will be through the Mentor Recruitment and Training Evaluation form and through focus group discussions | 6-12month | 
| Mentee Perspectives | Peer Mentorship Program Evaluation - Mentee form to be completed by the mentee to collect data on the mentees perspective of the program | 1-4 weeks | 
| Support Staff Perspectives | Peer Mentorship Program Evaluation - Staff to be completed by the center staff to collect data on their perspective of the program | 3,6,9 and 12 months | 
| Mentor - Mentee Matching | Preferences about matching (n and % for age range, gender, race, language, social conditions, specific dialysis experiences [e.g. Peritoneal Dialysis / Home HemoDialysis / transplant], and others). | 1 month |