[Competencies and Role Experiences of Peer Support - A Participatory Research Report].

OBJECTIVE: This study explores the peer support providers' competencies and role experiences.
METHODS: A multiple coding approach has been used to collaboratively analyze and discuss ethnographic material.
RESULTS: Compared to other professionals, peer support provider engage with patients in a more open and less classificatory way. Their role is often unclear and defined by both more flexibility and dependencies.
CONCLUSIONS: It is important to clearly define the competencies and roles of peer support providers and balance them with the expectations of the other professionals. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.