Preferences for Peer Support Amongst Families Engaged in Paediatric Screening Programmes: The Perspectives of Parents Involved in Screening for Type 1 Diabetes in Children Aged 3-13.

INTRODUCTION

This work describes a secondary analysis of a qualitative data set originally used to understand parent participants' preferences for the design and implementation of a screening programme for paediatric Type 1 diabetes (T1D). From this, their spontaneous preferences for peer support emerged, described here in the context of existing peer support programmes for the newly diagnosed alongside suggestions for their incorporation into screening programmes for T1D and a range of other conditions.

METHODS

Data were collected from semi-structured interviews conducted with parents of children aged 3-13 years to explore their expectations, perceptions and preferences of a T1D paediatric screening programme. A secondary analysis of interviews from participants who spontaneously raised preferences for peer support was used to populate a novel framework informed by NHS England's key principles for the same, namely, Shared experiences and reciprocated support, Accessibility and inclusivity and Person-centred and integrated peer support.

RESULTS

Parents in 29 of 33 interviews spontaneously described the potential value of peer support if receiving a result indicating a positive (presymptomatic T1D result) from a screening programme. Specifically, the value of 'Shared experiences and reciprocated support' in terms of emotional support and reassurance, and access to more directly interpretable and relevant information related to the condition; 'Accessibility and inclusivity' relating to access to a community of similar individuals, whether in person or online; 'Person-centred and integrated peer-support' and the need for support reflecting the changing need of the child and the integration of peer support with clinical care.

CONCLUSIONS

The needs of peer support described by parents involved in T1D paediatric screening appear to be shared with those of families with children diagnosed with a range of life-altering conditions. Although the needs of peer support for paediatric screening may differ across conditions, our findings are a valuable starting point for its design both in T1D and other examples of similar population screening programmes.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

Patients and the public have been involved throughout the design of the ELSA study and have worked with us to inform the study process. They contributed to the design and content of patient-facing materials, the content of our topic guides and the analysis and interpretation of our findings.