Coaching mental health peer advocates for rural LGBTQ people

ABSTRACT

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer or questioning (LGBTQ) people are affected by mental health disparities, especially in rural communities. We trained peer advocates in rural areas in the fundamentals of mental health, outreach, education, and support for this population. The peer advocates were coached by licensed mental health professionals. We evaluated this process through iterative qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews and written logs from coaches and advocates. The six major themes comprising the results centered on (1) coaching support, (2) peer advocate skills and preparation, (3) working with help seekers, (4) negotiating diversity, (5) logistical challenges in rural contexts, and (6) systemic challenges. We concluded that peer advocacy for LGBTQ people with mental distress offers an affirmative, community-based strategy to assist the underserved. To be successful, however, peer advocates will likely require ongoing training, coaching, and infrastructural support to negotiate contextual factors that can influence provision of community resources and support to LGBTQ people within rural communities.

KEYWORDS:

• Coaching
• intervention
• peer
• rural
• sexual and gender minority

Acknowledgements

We thank Lara Gunderson, Ricky Hill, Patricia Hokanson, Elise Trott, and our Community Advisory Boards for their contribution to this research.

Funding

This research was funded by grant R34MH095238 from the National Institute of Mental Health.

Disclosure

The authors declare no conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.