‘We have to band together’: service user experiences of naturally occurring peer support on the acute mental health unit

Abstract

Peer support has been proposed as a way to enhance the provision of mental health care; however, research has predominantly centred around formalised peer support programmes, with a dearth of studies exploring the anecdotally described phenomenon of naturally occurring peer support. This paper reports how naturally occurring peer support took place among service users in adult acute mental health unit settings, drawing on a thematic analysis of qualitative interviews gathered from four New Zealand facilities. Our analysis revealed three themes in relation to how peer support naturally occurred: (1) fulfilling a need to connect, (2) desire to improve the unit experience for others and (3) a sense of solidarity among service users. These interwoven but distinct themes provide a means for understanding naturally occurring peer support in the context of busy, under-resourced acute mental health settings and draw attention to its strengths, helping to fulfil service users’ need for support and connection in the absence of talking therapies or staff available to talk to. The findings highlight the potential for staff to recognise and facilitate these interactions in the acute care setting, and may help to dismantle stigmatising perspectives, demonstrating service users’ capacity for kindness despite being acutely unwell.