Peer Counseling Tested For Schizophrenia

Peer counseling has been helpful for patients with a number of psychiatric disorders, but has rarely been studied as a means of delivering information and support for people with schizophrenia. In a study reported in the December, 2007, issue of the journal Patient Education Counseling, eighty-five patients with schizophrenia addressed their questions about their illness to a man living with schizoaffective disorder for twenty years. Author Kluge-Rummel and colleagues report that not only were the patients' questions answered well, but they also felt they had received support and encouragement from a peer who had successfully lived with many of their own challenges. The study suggests that support and social service organizations should look for ways to implement and encourage peer counseling in their networks.