Sneha Suicide Prevention Centre will soon start training counsellors of healthcare provider GVK-EMRI’s ‘104’ helpline in dealing with callers in distress.
“The training is expected to start soon. Our training program is based on training given in crisis centres abroad, but we have customised it to suit the Indian population,” founder of Sneha, Lakshmi Vijayakumar, said. The training program involves 40 hours of group training and 15 hours of individual training.
The ‘104’ helpline, launched in 2013, has employed three psychologists to take calls from people with mental health issues. They provide counselling to those who are dealing with marital problems, alcoholism and even, suicidal tendencies.
“Although we have been dealing with patients who are suicidal, we don’t have the specialised skills that Sneha does. So it will be very useful to undergo training with them,” B. Elayaraja, one of the psychologists with the helpline, said. While the team receives around 80 calls a day that require counsellors, only around two or three calls a day are from suicidal persons.
“When we see recurring suicidal behaviour, we refer the person to a psychiatrist. Otherwise, we provide counselling on the phone and even try to incorporate cognitive behaviour therapy into our sessions. We encourage people to call back for follow-up sessions,” he said.
A majority of the calls they receive are for marital problems and alcoholism. “For most of these people, just knowing that somebody is listening to them is enough to make them feel better,” he said.
The counselling team with the helpline also has a woman counsellor, available on call from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., as well as a psychiatrist, L. Suresh, who is available on Saturdays and Mondays for consultations. Sneha suicide prevention helpline can be contacted at 044-24640060.
