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Research Article: Peer support impact on therapeutic adherence in patients with multiple sclerosis: a mixed-methods pilot trial protocol

Date Published: 2023-12-30

Abstract:
Introduction Patient partnership is a key component of patient-centred care. One form of partnership is individual peer support, which can improve patients’ quality of life and adherence to treatment. Patient with multiple sclerosis could benefit from this type of support, but such an intervention has not been explored in the literature. We propose in this article a pilot study protocol to assess the feasibility and acceptability of healthcare-integrated individual peer support, and the feasibility of a large-scale efficacy trial. Methods and analysis The PAIR-SEP study is a mixed-methods pilot clinical trial combining quantitative and qualitative approaches. Sixty patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis undergoing drug therapy from the Neurology centre of Nantes University Hospital (France) will be randomised on a 1:1 ratio to receive either usual care only or usual care combined with peer support (three individual sessions at 1, 3 and 5 months with a peer helper). We will evaluate clinical outcomes in preparation of the large-scale trial: therapeutic adherence 6 months after baseline, therapeutic compliance, quality of life, anxiety and depression, social support. All dimensions will be assessed using validated health questionnaires at baseline and at 6 months. Intervention’s acceptability and feasibility will be evaluated using qualitative methods: undirected interviews with patients from the intervention group and separate focus-groups with the peer helpers the healthcare team. Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval was obtained from the local ethics committee on 1 October 2022. This study was designed in collaboration with multiple sclerosis peer helpers. The trial findings will be published in peer-reviewed journals. Trial registration number NCT05519553 .

Introduction:
With the significant increase in chronic diseases prevalence, patient partnership has gradually emerged to the detriment of the paternalistic approach. 1 The Montreal model, created by researchers of the Centre of Excellence for Partnership with Patients and the Public (CEPPP) nearly 15 years ago, describe a patient partner as ‘a person progressively habilitated, during their care pathway, to make free and informed health choices. Their experiential knowledge is recognized and their self-care skills are developed…

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