SCI Thrive: Impact of a peer-led online self-management program

Hoffman, Jeanne M.; Garbaccio, Chris; Tyman, Shannon; Chapman, Jayden; Gray, Daniel L.; Starosta, Amy J.

doi:10.1080/10790268.2023.2192852

Cited by 3 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 34 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This is particularly relevant given the timing of this intervention, which occurred throughout the early COVID-19 pandemic. While the broad population experienced increased loneliness during this time period ( 18 ), findings from our trial suggest that the participants in SCI Thrive did not experience a significant decrease in social integration ( 8 ). Perhaps this stability could be related to the experience of shared peer community.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 66%

“…In total, 184 individuals with SCI participated in the study over 22 unique cohorted groups. Characteristics of the total sample was reviewed in previously published work ( 8 ). Of the 184 participants, 26 individuals did not create an online login for the course and never engaged with online content, and as such were removed from the current qualitative analyses.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This qualitative study was part of a clinical trial designed to assess the efficacy of SCI Thrive. Full description of the methods for recruitment, retention, intervention, and assessment are described elsewhere ( 8 ). In short, all participants provided informed consent prior to initiation of any study procedure.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Health education or self-management programs are a growing adjunct to traditional health care services that aid individuals with chronic medical conditions in learning about and managing their symptoms and medical care. These programs have been effective with a wide range of chronic health and rehabilitation conditions, including for individuals living traumatic brain injury ( 7 ) or SCI ( 8 ). The emphasis on self-management rather than medical management provides a natural role for individuals that have lived experience and success in self-management offering peer-mentorship and support.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

“There's always something, and then there's more”: a qualitative examination of how virtual peer led self-management can create community around the evolving SCI experience

Starosta,

Tyman,

Garbaccio

et al. 2024

Front. Rehabil. Sci.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

IntroductionSelf-management programs for spinal cord injury (SCI) are a growing adjunct to traditional healthcare services aiding individuals with SCI in learning and managing symptoms and medical care. A benefit of self-management programs is that they can be facilitated by peers, offering a unique lived experience of adjusting to and managing SCI. While a growing body of literature highlights the effectiveness of peer led programs, there is limited understanding of how individuals engage with peer programs or critical components of peer support. The current study seeks to understand how individuals engaged with peers in the context of a self-management program.MethodsSecondary qualitative analysis of online forum posts resultant from a peer led self-management course for SCI.ResultsContent analysis revealed several themes of how participants engaged with members of the group, including skill building, resource sharing, and problem solving. A process level theme of emotional connection to others living with similar SCI-related challenges was defined as “bearing witness.” Participants commented frequently that groups were the first time they engaged with a community with lived experience, and shared experience was frequently highlighted in the responses from individuals as one of the most unique and important aspects of the intervention.DiscussionThemes identified suggest that bearing witness was a critical component of peer led intervention. While self-management content provided structure for engagement and discussion, participants report that connectedness and shared experience made content more impactful and relevant. Future research should examine if alignment of peer and participant experience increases the impact of interventions and explore if this theme is important for other chronic medical populations.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 66%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

“There's always something, and then there's more”: a qualitative examination of how virtual peer led self-management can create community around the evolving SCI experience

Starosta,

Tyman,

Garbaccio

et al. 2024

Front. Rehabil. Sci.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…One intervention was assisted by a psychotherapist ( 43 ) and another one was facilitated by a psychologist and a peer ( 29 ). Three interventions were solely accompanied by a peer, for example via video chat ( 30 , 31 , 36 ). Further applications were supported by trained nursing staff ( 33 , 34 ), a physiotherapist ( 37 ) or a music therapist ( 46 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digital psychosocial interventions for individuals with spinal cord injury: a scoping review

Armstrong,

Oetinger,

Weimer

et al. 2024

Front. Psychiatry

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ObjectiveTo provide an overview of the digital mental health care landscape for individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI).MethodsPubMed, PsycInfo, and PSYNDEX were searched for articles meeting the following criteria: (1) article written in English or German; (2) digital psychosocial intervention; (3) SCI only; (4) treatment of individuals with SCI and not their relatives or caregivers. Records were screened by title and abstract and records meeting the inclusion criteria were obtained for full text screening. The references of identified articles were screened to find further relevant articles. The literature search was updated before submission. Risk of Bias was assessed by using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials (RoB 2) and a narrative synthesis was conducted.ResultsTen randomized-controlled trials (RCT) and ten non-randomized-controlled trials were identified and compared in this review, evaluating twelve internet- and mobile-based interventions, five smartphone apps, and three virtual reality applications. The interventions were primarily used as stand-alone aftercare programs. While some were not based on any theory, cognitive behavioral therapy mostly served as the theoretical basis for the online interventions. The extent of human support also varied greatly between the studies. The number of intervention modules ranged between 2 and 72. There were also major differences in outcome variables and effects. A meta-analytical evaluation of the data was not conducted due to heterogeneity of studies.ConclusionDigital applications to promote the psychosocial health of individuals with SCI are an emerging field of research with many treatment approaches still to come. First high quality RCT studies report promising results. Unfortunately, not all studies are of high quality or the interventions have been insufficiently adapted to the needs of people with SCI. Therefore, more research is needed to further develop applications, and to generalize and test the effects found in the long term.

show abstract