Supporting family peer mentors to help parents in recovery
Staffing and Supports for Implementing Cross-System Interventions with Peer Mentors
This project tries a supervision coaching approach to help peer mentors and child welfare staff better support parents with substance use challenges and keep families together.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Ohio State University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Columbus, UNITED STATES) |
| Project ID | NIH-11358190 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Ohio counties are using the Sobriety Treatment and Recovery Teams (START) program to help parents get treatment, medication-assisted treatment, and reunify with their children. Many START teams—especially in rural and Appalachian counties—stopped serving families because family peer mentors and caseworkers left their jobs from stigma and poor support. This project will provide supervision coaching and tools to child welfare supervisors to create more supportive work environments and improve staff retention. The team will work with 53 Ohio county child welfare agencies and measure whether coaching helps sustain START services and workforce stability.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates include parents in Ohio involved with child welfare because of substance use disorders, along with the family peer mentors and child welfare staff who work with them in participating counties.
Not a fit: People not involved with Ohio child welfare agencies, who live outside participating counties, or whose families are not served by START teams are unlikely to benefit directly.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help parents get steadier peer support and treatment access, improving chances of sobriety and reunification with their children.
How similar studies have performed: The START model has previously improved parents' treatment access, sobriety, and reunification, but applying supervision coaching to retain peer mentors and strengthen implementation is a newer approach with limited prior testing.
Where this research is happening
Columbus, UNITED STATES
- Ohio State University — Columbus, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Bunger, Alicia C — Ohio State University
- Study coordinator: Bunger, Alicia C
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.