Research Projects –
peer connection
Supporting treatment adherence through peer connection
Project Duration – 2 years
What is the research about?
Living with CF involves a significant daily treatment burden. While highly effective CFTR modulator therapies have transformed care for many people with CF, treatment adherence remains a challenge, particularly during young adulthood.
This is an important time when young people are taking greater responsibility for managing their own health and transitioning from paediatric to adult care. Staying on top of treatments can be difficult alongside study, work, relationships and everyday life.
Dr Lucy Pillay and her team will investigate how young adults with CF manage their treatment, including the factors that make it easier or harder to stay engaged with care.
The research will also develop and test a virtual peer mentoring program, connecting young people with CF with CF mentors. The program will explore whether having a trusted peer who understands the realities of living with CF can help young people feel more supported, improve treatment engagement and build confidence in managing their health.
Why does this matter for people with CF?
Treatment adherence can have a significant impact on long-term health. When treatments are missed or become difficult to maintain, people with CF may be more likely to experience pulmonary exacerbations, hospitalisation and worsening disease.
People with CF can also experience isolation because infection prevention requirements limit opportunities to connect with others who understand their experiences. Virtual peer support can provide a safe way for people with CF to connect without the infection risks associated with face-to-face contact.
This research will help identify the practical, emotional and social factors that influence treatment adherence in young people with CF. It will also test whether structured peer mentoring can improve treatment engagement, self-management and wellbeing.
Improving adherence over the long term could help reduce pulmonary exacerbations, hospitalisations and lung function decline, contributing to better health and survival across the lifespan.
What will the research do?
The research team will:
- Investigate treatment adherence and self-management among young adults with CF.
- Identify the practical, social and emotional factors that can make it harder to stay engaged with treatment.
- Develop and pilot a virtual peer mentoring program delivered by trained adults living with CF.
- Assess whether peer mentoring can improve treatment adherence, confidence in self-management, emotional wellbeing and clinical outcomes.
What could happen next?
The findings from this pilot will be used to refine the virtual peer mentoring program based on feedback from participants and the results of the study.
If the approach is shown to be feasible and beneficial, the next step will be a larger multicentre study involving CF services across Australia. This would assess whether the program can be expanded and the improvements can be achieved in other CF centres.
The team will work with CF services, consumer organisations and digital health partners to explore how the program could be expanded across metropolitan, regional and remote communities.
The goal is to help young people with CF feel more supported, more confident and better equipped to manage their treatment as they move into adulthood.
Dr Lucy Pillay,
The Royal Adelaide Hospital
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