(PS10-B31) Evaluating Outcomes of College Student Peer Mental Health Coach Trainees Supporting the Implementation of STAND Digital Therapy

Peer-based counseling programs have been widely recognized as an innovative strategy for delivering mental health services to marginalized and underserved populations. While studies have demonstrated that peer coaching programs are effective in improving mental health outcomes for the individuals who are served, limited research had explored potential changes in mental health and related outcomes among peer coaches themselves. In the current study, we seek to evaluate the impact of a peer-to-peer coach training experience on primarily Latinx community college students who participate in a coach training and supervision program. This program trains coaches to support their student peers who enroll in an evidence-based digital therapy, STAND digital therapy. The coach training program is part of a largescale research initiative focused on implementing a tiered system of mental health care, including digital therapy supported by peer-to-peer coaching, on an underserved community college campus in Southern California. Coaches undergo intensive training, including learning and practicing six core clinical process skills and an array of cognitive-behavioral therapy interventions as they complete the STAND digital therapy modules themselves. This study will assess coaches at multiple timepoints to evaluate changes in mental health outcomes, perceived stigma, use of mental health services, mental health knowledge and attitudes, empathy and emotional intelligence, self-efficacy, and interest in pursuing a mental health career. Assessments will be conducted with a cohort of n=36 coaches beginning in April 2023 at (1) pre, (2) mid and (3) post their 20-week training program. We hypothesize that coaches will evidence reductions in stigma regarding mental health services, decreased depression and anxiety, and increases in emotional intelligence, self-efficacy, and self-esteem over the course of their training. Data collection and analysis will be completed by September 2023 and reported in this poster presentation. Findings from this study have potential to enhance scalability of digital mental health interventions by exploring their impact on an understudied, essential, and highly motivated group: peer coaches.