We aim to assess quality of life metrics of Persons with Parkinson’s (PwP) after participation in a peer mentorship program.

Group support groups are popular forms of social support in Parkinson’s Disease (PD), however there is little known about one-on-one peer mentorship for PwP.   Our preliminary data has shown that a peer mentorship is feasible and viewed favorably by participants.  There is little data regarding quality of life metrics based on time of participation in peer mentorship programs.

Parkinson’s Pals is a peer mentorship program for PwP at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital.  Mentors communicate with mentees monthly via their preferred communication medium (phone call, video call, in person).  To assess for quality of life for participants, we will administer the Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire 39 (PDQ-39), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), and qualitative questions about benefits of the program.  Participants will be surveyed at time zero and six months thereafter.

Preliminary results studying the subset of mentors and mentees participating in Parkinson’s Pals showed lower depressive symptoms and improved overall quality of life, mobility, and cognition scores in mentors versus mentees.  Qualitatively, all participants found the program beneficial and would recommend a similar program to others. We will investigate further how time in the program affects quality of life metrics.

We hope to demonstrate how participation in a one-on-one peer mentorship program affects quality of life metrics over time.  Future directions include standardization of mentor-mentee selection process and formalized mentor training curriculum.