Peer mentorship program for young adults living with heart failure
Tests online peer mentoring for young adults with heart failure over 12 weeks.
Plain-language title generated from the registry record
Registry title: The iPeer2Peer Mentorship Program for Young Adults With Heart Disease
Key facts
- Where
- Toronto, CanadaSee the site
Could this be for you?
Answer for yourself. This is not a decision: only the study team can say whether you can take part.
- Are you between 18 and 35 years old?
Source: NCT07119216, who can take part
Where in Canada
- The Hospital for Sick ChildrenToronto, CanadaNo longer taking part
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Trial details
- Who runs it
- Samantha Anthony
- Trial code
- NCT07119216
- Record updated
- 13 August 2025
- Original description
Young adults with heart failure, including those who have undergone a heart transplant, experience considerable psychosocial stressors associated with living with a chronic illness, including heightened levels of anxiety and depression, and poor health-related quality of life compared to 'healthy' peers. Psychosocial challenges during young adulthood are especially concerning as this life stage represents a unique transitional period for fostering self-identity, friendships, mastery, and decision-making competencies. As young people with heart failure transition into adult healthcare systems, they take on greater personal responsibility due to their increasing independence and involvement in care decisions, and require more support and resources to live longer, healthier lives. Peer support provided by a person with a similar experience has been found to improve disease self-management and psychosocial health outcomes in pediatric healthcare.Read full original descriptionShow less
The iPeer2Peer Support Mentorship Program for Young Adult Patients With Heart Disease: A Feasibility Study
Young adults with heart failure, including those who have undergone a heart transplant, experience considerable psychosocial stressors associated with living with a chronic illness, including heightened levels of anxiety and depression, and poor health-related quality of life compared to 'healthy' peers. Psychosocial challenges during young adulthood are especially concerning as this life stage represents a unique transitional period for fostering self-identity, friendships, mastery, and decision-making competencies. As young people with heart failure transition into adult healthcare systems, they take on greater personal responsibility due to their increasing independence and involvement in care decisions, and require more support and resources to live longer, healthier lives. Peer support provided by a person with a similar experience has been found to improve disease self-management and psychosocial health outcomes in pediatric healthcare.
An established, online mentorship program, iPeer2Peer (iP2P), will be employed through a pilot feasibility waitlist randomized controlled trial with repeated measures across five sites. Sixty mentees will be recruited and randomized into intervention and control groups. Thirty mentees in the intervention group will be matched 1:1 with 20 trained mentors. These pairings will connect over 12 weeks through video calls and text messaging to provide peer support to improve self-management and psychosocial health outcomes.
Inclusion: Peer Mentor inclusion criteria: (a) heart disease patients, (b) at least three months post-diagnosis, (c) between the ages of 26-35 years old, (d) nominated by a member of their healthcare team as a good candidate to act in the mentor role based on maturity and emotional stability (e.g., good communication skills, positive adaptation and adjustment, strong support network), (e) willingness to commit to virtual peer mentor training, (f) able to speak and read English, and (g) access to a device (e.g., smart phone, tablet, computer) capable of using free WhatsApp software; Peer Mentee inclusion criteria: (a) heart disease patients, (b) between the ages of 18-25 years old, (c) able to speak and read English, and (d) access to a device (e.g., smart phone, tablet, computer) capable of using free WhatsApp software; Heart disease patients include:; Patients with any past or present heart failure; Patients with cardiomyopathy seen at least 2 times a year; Patients who have undergone a Fontan procedure; Patients who have undergone a heart transplant.
Exclusion: Mentor and mentee exclusion criteria include: (a) Significant cognitive impairments as assessed by a qualified healthcare provider (HCP), (b) have a diagnosis of an active psychological disorder (e.g.: Major Depressive Disorder, etc.; determined through chart review by a qualified HCP) likely to influence assessment of health-related quality of life and/or interfere with their ability to manage their heart disease care regimen, and (c) are participating in other peer support or self-management interventions.