FPA's Expand Mental Health Workforce ​

IDEAS researchers have explored expanding the behavioral health workforce through the the use of family peer advocates (FPA). FPAs are parents or caregivers of youth with mental health needs who help other parents of youth with mental health needs.

Together, IDEAS researchers, family peer advocates, and policymakers developed and tested, with NIMH funding, a program to train FPAs, known as the Parent Empowerment Program, or PEP.  We also developed quality indicators for both family peer advocates, and the programs that employ them, and explored how best to integrate FPAs into mental health treatment teams. 

Today, PEP is used to train family peer advocates statewide, and is now a required training for receipt of the family peer advocate credential in the state of New York.  We are also testing an FPA-delivered telephone-based intervention to parents of youth with first episode psychosis enrolled in New York State's OnTrack treatment program. ​​

Want an FPA Workforce in your State?

Thinking about designing or refining a Family Peer Advocate workforce in your state? 

Learn more about NYS' Family Peer Advocate training program (PEP), and our statewide credentialing program for Family Peer Advocates.  

​We have also developed measures of what quality FPA-provided services look like, as well as quality indicators for the programs/agencies that employ them and that insure a greater likelihood of team functioning.

Learn more about NYS' Family Peer Advocate training program (PEP), and our credentialing program (statewide) for Family Peer Advocates. 

And click here to learn more about the IDEAS Center Family Peer Advocates who lead our family peer support research on our IDEAS research team.

FPA Quality Indicators

Quality FPA Programs