Parents Supporting Parents: Implementing A Peer Parent Program For Perinatal Loss

Support following a loss can be found in many different ways. While peer support groups have been well documented over the past decade as an effective means of helping people get through difficult periods, the use of peer support programs, overall, have been less formally utilized and evaluated.

Purpose for the program: The purpose of this poster presentation is to review and evaluate a peer parent program for perinatal bereavement based at a mid-sized hospital in the Midwest.

Proposed change: Furthermore, our aim is to provide an effective model from which other hospitals and support programs can develop peer support programs for patients who have experienced pregnancy loss and/or a neonatal demise.

Methods: Focus groups completed by peer parents and brief program evaluation surveys completed by both the peer parents and the parents receiving support documented participants’ perceptions of the program. Data analysis consisted of descriptive statistics and qualitative content analysis of demographic data and feedback received from the surveys and focus groups.

Implementation, outcomes and evaluation: The program has been active since 2010.  During this time a total of 15 women and 1 man has been trained as a peer parent; 17 women have been assigned to peer parents. For the peer parents, the most rewarding aspect of being involved in the program was giving back by helping others with similar experiences; conversely, the most difficult related to logistics (e.g., handling unreciprocated contact). The parents receiving support found it was helpful to talk with someone with a similar experience; however, others reported that it was difficult to accept support if they weren’t emotionally ready.

Implications for nursing practice: Hospitals and organizations supporting parents dealing with perinatal loss should consider the significance of including peer support programs. While some organizations may develop such programs informally, our evaluation determined parents found benefit in a more formalized training--both to gain confidence in their therapeutic abilities and to further develop their own support and sense of community. As a whole, both the parents providing support and those receiving support found the program to be helpful towards their healing. Such programs offer a much needed one-on-one approach to care that provides grieving parents with a normalizing experience.

Keywords: bereavement, perinatal loss, peer parent program