Delivering high-quality healthcare as a sonographer can be emotionally challenging and demanding, especially with complex or technically difficult cases, high workloads, and tricky workplace dynamics. These pressures can lead to professional fatigue and burnout, highlighting the need for a supportive, confidential environment outside of the workplace.

Peer professional support (PPS) involves qualified health professionals from the same field, but potentially different workplaces or organisations, coming together to debrief, engage in reflective discussions, offer mutual moral support, and provide guidance on enhancing skills, capabilities, and knowledge. While peer-to-peer professional support is well-established in other health disciplines like nursing and psychology, such a support system does not yet exist in sonography.

Peer professional support involves reciprocal psychosocial assistance provided by peers with similar experiences, offering authentic empathy and validation to each other. Developing a PPS network can enhance occupational resilience and sustain the capacity for high-quality, contemporary, and compassionate healthcare services.

This session will introduce participants to the concept of PPS, the benefits of PPS and how to facilitate and participate in it. Additionally, an open discussion on how PPS can be implemented within the sonography field will be hosted, inviting attendees to contribute to the development of a national/international sonographer PPS network. The session will also focus on developing skills in reflective practice and sharing experiences and reflections in a safe, supportive, and confidential environment.