Unit for Social and Community Psychiatry, (WHO Collaborating Centre for Mental Health Service Development), Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.
East London NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
BMC Psychiatry. 2020 Jul 14;20(1):368. doi: 10.1186/s12888-020-02776-w.
Befriending is a popular form of volunteering in healthcare, and research suggests that it can be beneficial for people with mental illness. This study aimed to explore the experiences of a large sample of volunteer befrienders and patients who participated in the VOLUME trial, testing the efficacy of a structured befriending programme for individuals with psychosis. This is the first study to explore the specific challenges and benefits of befriending in both volunteers and patients in this population within the same programme.
A series of in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with 34 volunteer befrienders and 28 participating patients. All participants who had taken part in at least one befriending session were invited to be interviewed about their experiences with the aim of including a wide range of views, including those who were more or less engaged with the befriending programme. The data were analysed using Thematic Analysis.
Four broad themes were developed from the analysis of the befriender and patient interviews which, although were largely discrete, captured the overall experiences of participating in the befriending programme: 1) Bridging the gap, 2) A genuine relationship that developed over time, 3) A big commitment, and 4) A flexible approach.
These results further support that, befriending programmes for individuals with psychosis can be a worthwhile experience for both befrienders and patients. However, participation also requires perseverance and flexibility from both sides. Different factors, such as incorporating participant preferences for frequency of meetings, have to be considered in the development and management of a befriending programme in order to provide effective support to both befrienders and patients.
陪伴是医疗保健领域中一种流行的志愿服务形式，研究表明它对患有精神疾病的人有益。本研究旨在探索 VOLUME 试验中大量志愿者陪伴者和患者的经验，该试验测试了一种针对精神病患者的结构化陪伴计划的疗效。这是第一项在同一计划中探索该人群中志愿者和患者陪伴的具体挑战和益处的研究。
对 34 名志愿者陪伴者和 28 名参与患者进行了一系列深入的半结构化访谈。所有至少参加过一次陪伴会议的参与者都被邀请就他们的经验进行访谈，目的是包括广泛的观点，包括那些对陪伴计划更投入或不那么投入的观点。使用主题分析对数据进行分析。
从对陪伴者和患者访谈的分析中得出了四个广泛的主题，尽管它们基本上是离散的，但捕捉了参与陪伴计划的总体经验：1）弥合差距，2）随着时间的推移发展起来的真诚关系，3）巨大的承诺，和 4）灵活的方法。
这些结果进一步支持，针对精神病患者的陪伴计划对陪伴者和患者来说都是一种有价值的体验。然而，参与还需要双方的毅力和灵活性。为了为陪伴者和患者提供有效的支持，在开发和管理陪伴计划时，必须考虑到诸如纳入参与者对会议频率的偏好等不同因素。
