Characteristics of peer respites in the United States: Expanding the continuum of care for psychiatric crisis.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Peer respites are recovery-oriented services where people who identify as having lived experience of extreme mental health states (peers) support individuals experiencing, or at risk of, crises in a homelike environment. This brief report describes data from the Peer Respite Essential Features survey, conducted biannually from 2014 to 2020, which explores the peer respite model and program challenges. METHOD: Peer respites nationwide were invited to participate if they met specific guidelines, resulting in 32 programs across 14 states in 2020. RESULTS: Results focus on the data collected in 2020 and compare past reports where applicable. Characteristics including funding, guest accommodations and policies, and how the programs were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic are discussed. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE More research is needed to understand the relationship between program characteristics and effectiveness of peer respites compared to other crisis diversion services and how to better support these growing programs. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).