Exchanging of knowledge – lessons from implementation of a peer education program in Sydney, Australia

Introduction: Social housing residents often experience poorer health outcomes compared to the wider community due to factors such as social isolation, intergenerational disadvantage, trauma, poverty, stigma, limited health literacy, and barriers to accessing resources.

Peer Educators provide a link between their communities, the health sector and the broader environment. Shared characteristics and experiences between peers and communities can enhance effectiveness of public health interventions – peers know their communities, how they work and what issues they face, and know how to connect and support people.

The Health and Wellbeing Peer Education Program aims to improve knowledge about health and wellbeing among social housing residents. The program was established collaboratively, by staff and community. The project builds on community interest in targeted health information and a desire to support other community members to improve individual and collective wellbeing in social housing in their local community.

The Program has been implemented in inner Sydney since 2022, with 21 social housing residents trained as Peer Educators to deliver health and wellbeing information sessions to others in their community. The Peer Educators are a culturally diverse group and range in age from 25 to 85 years, and have remained highly engaged throughout implementation.

The Peer Educators have taught the health professionals involved in the implementation of this program about what messages are important to deliver, and how to effectively deliver them. This workshop will share those learnings, and also explore the benefits for Peer Educators. 

The Workshop: Designed and facilitated by Peer Educators, this workshop will convey the value of Peer Education that is centred on a community’s health and wellbeing, rather than one specific disease or condition. Participants will hear first-hand information from Peer Educators about their experience with the program, its benefits and challenges, as well as advice about how to implement a similar program in their own communities. Policy makers, researchers, managers, clinicians and citizens interested in Peer Education models will find value in attending.

 

Peer Educators will facilitate activities that demonstrate what they found most effective in setting up a safe space where academics, health professionals, community workers, Peer Educators and community members were able to work as a cohesive team.

1.Introduction (15 minutes): An overview of the Peer Education Program, including its background, model, and preliminary evaluation data.

2.Group activity (20 mins): Led by Peer Educators, participants engage in an activity that promotes a safe space for collaboration, encouraging people of all backgrounds and abilities to work together. Participants reflect on how this activity impacts their partnerships.

3.Implementation advice (20 mins): Peer Educators fact-check participants' knowledge and assumptions about Peer Education models, drawing on their own experiences and highlighting essential features for implementation planning.

4.Q&A (20 mins): Peer Educators and program staff form a panel, answering participants' questions.

5.Personal Stories (15 mins – throughout workshop): Peer Educators share brief accounts of their experiences with healthcare services and living in social housing communities, which motivated their engagement with the Peer Education program.