>> Client Engagements: Lifeline Australia Mental Health for Telephone Counsellors

Lifeline Australia Mental Health for Telephone Counsellors
Client
Disciplines	Training - Cognitive
Situation	Lifeline Australia recognised that their volunteer counsellors had high exposure to mental health issues in the callers that rang the service.
Challenge	To provide trainee counsellors with information on the nature of mental illness and how they can deal with these types of issues when operating the Lifeline phone service.
Response	O2C developed a one day course to be incorporated into the wider counsellor training course to address these issues. This course is delivered by O2C twice a year to new counsellors as part of their induction prior to commencing their role with Lifeline. The outcomes of this course include: Overview of mental illness within Australia Signs and symptoms of major mental illnesses Identify signs that a caller may be experiencing a mental illness Develop strategies for callers who may exhibit symptoms of mental illness Identify available treatments Case Studies and role plays
Outcome	O2C developed a purpose built course for Lifeline which met the needs of trainee counsellors. This course has been delivered by O2C to all new Lifeline trainees 2005 and receives excellent reviews from each course of counsellors that are involved. They report that they are more comfortable with dealing with these types of call. They also feel that they can better manage any issues they personally experience in their role with Lifeline.