By Erica Leon
Covid-19 has completely changed our lives, leaving hundreds of thousands of Canadians without employment or at best, earning significantly less than before the pandemic hit. The moment the country went on lockdown, every community felt engulfed in an isolated, anxious state.
At first, the tone was calm-ish, forecasting a fourteen-day communal countdown. Inspiring quotes and funny photos became ubiquitous on Facebook. The thought was that if we all stayed inside for two short weeks, all would go back to the way it was before and the fourteen days inside would be an extended winter break. Days quickly started fusing together, converting a shared journey into a sci fi movie no one wanted to be in.
According to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) , one in five Canadians will experience mental health or addiction issues in any given year. Fear of an “echo pandemic” of mental illness after Covid-19 has been circulating newspaper headlines for months. The reality is, the stress from being a frontline worker, or being mandated to stay inside, increases the potential of at home violent circumstances. The pressures adds to already disintegrating relationships, including those with lousy housemates and the effects of isolating have resulted in the surge of crisis hotline usage.
Crisis hotlines in Canada
There are crisis hotlines available in Canada, the majority offering phone calls, and texting options while a few offer in person counselling sessions with professional counselors or social workers. The volunteers who offer their time to organizations such as the Kids Help Phone, the Toronto Rape Crisis Center or the Distress Center, are the frontline workers of these crisis lines.
Volunteers are the heart of the crisis hotlines and without them, there would not be anyone to answer the phone or text messages. The increase of calls to these agencies, demands volunteers who demonstrate empathy and knowledge of all situations as they arise.
The training required to become a volunteer is extensive. Covid-19 has altered the way organizations operate including halting in person counselling in place of phone and texting options which had had an alarming effect on a vulnerable population.
I had to opportunity to speak with a few volunteers who offer insight to the training process, the shift in accessibility during Covid-19 as well as the care they receive so they avoid succumbing to burn out. Names have been changed for privacy reasons.
Kids Help Phone
Information from Lina and Vanessa:
Kids Help Phone was originally offered for youth aged 5-20 but, since Covid-19, the age range was expanded to 25 years old and all front-line workers, and they are no longer screening for age due to urgency. During the first two weeks of Covid-19, the kids help phone was experiencing more phone calls and texts than there were volunteers available. When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau mentioned this center during one of his briefings, there is now an overage of volunteers.
Having a social work educational background helps secure a volunteer position and there is a screening process which requires references, but there isn’t an in-person interview. The training length is 50 hours, but it can be fast tracked with consolidated training. The training involves several modules which include both video and readings. In between and at the end of the module you have a test. If you pass you move on, if you fail you have the opportunity to retake the test. Volunteers work from home so that hasn’t changed since Covid-19. There is also an online database with all potential social issues which is available to all volunteers. Supervisors also monitor messages and offer respite to volunteers such as breaks or immediate relief.
Covid-19 has brought an extra need for crisis services. One drawback of hotlines is there are trigger words for volunteers to be mindful of during “high-risk calls” which can result in the police being dispatched. This isn’t always the best solution for the client. Not all police officers are trained to assist with mental health issues and this can result in a triggering presence to the individual in distress. One suggestion would be to have follow up with clients to offer after care. The goal is to get from a hot moment to a cool calm.
The Toronto Rape Crisis Center
Information from Arlene:
The training process is taught from an anti oppressive perspective which is similar to the teachings in the social work program. The goal is not to give advice but to offer unbiased support. Many of the clients are from vulnerable populations and working with the client to find empowering tools is the goal. The training is offered over six days usually every weekend. After the in-class training, there are observed shifts where senior staff provides feedback.
For the volunteers there is support during shifts and calls can be covered if they become overwhelmed or triggered. It’s a very supportive atmosphere and they also have a WhatsApp chat for all volunteers to get support from each other.
There has been an increase in calls since Covid-19 and the regular callers are more stressed out because they feel stuck and scared. There is a loss of resources because of a loss of funding and a lot of places switched from in person support to online access which many clients don’t have. The library has been closed for many weeks and that is sometimes the only safe space clients have to access help.
Distress Center of Greater Toronto
Information from Jared:
The training process is quite lengthy. There is an online application, phone interview, in person interview and if you get through those stages the training duration is between 30-40 hours and a vulnerable sector screening is required. The training covers active listening, crisis intervention, suicide response, intimate partner abuse, when to dispatch Children’s Aid, methods to deal with harassing calls and arousal calls.
Role playing is also a part of the training process and involves various scenarios such as grief, violence and suicide. The final test before you officially become a volunteer is a “pretend crisis phone call” when you are given a scenario and you have to access and handle the situation as you would an actual client phone call. After you pass training, you listen in on calls and then you take a call and you receive feedback from a mentor.
There was a spike in calls at the beginning of Covid-19 and it took a few weeks to adjust for remote calls. There are offices around the GTA which could no longer be accessed so there were some technology issues. Some volunteers were lost because they didn’t have reliable internet access.
There is relief for volunteers if they find themselves overwhelmed or in need. Supervisors are always on call and are available to debrief and discuss calls. They also suggest volunteers use aliases to protect themselves from being searched online. Anonymity is crucial for clients as well as volunteers.
Interested in becoming a volunteer?
View a list of Hamilton, Toronto and Ontario crisis services here
(Lead photo created by master1305 at Freepik.com.)
