Para-counsellors for first line of treatment

NST: KUALA LUMPUR: From next year, neighbourhood counsellors will help ease the emotional burden of those facing psychological problems after tragedies.
Under pilot projects to be carried out by the Welfare Department, community leaders and volunteers will be trained in the first-stage of counselling.
The department’s deputy director-general (planning), Meme Zainal Rashid, said the "para-counsellors" would do their best at their level to help people, especially those who have lost loved ones.
"When someone in the community loses a loved one, these para-counsellors can step in and provide counselling. And if they feel that the person needs professional help, they can refer them to us and we can take over," she told the New Straits Times.
She said the department will train core groups of people "and we will then see where it goes from there".
Although the project is still on the drawing board, the department is confident that it will be a success.
Meme Zainal said the department would identify several communities for the pilot projects. The department is currently over-extended in efforts to deal with those needing psychological counselling as it only has 40 trained counsellors nationwide.
With para-counsellors, the full-time counsellors will be able to provide more indepth assistance to patients.
The department’s counsellors work on a referral basis, with patients having come themselves or been referred by family members. The department does not have a unit which proactively identifies people in need of counselling.
The exception are cases where the department is conducting social intervention programmes and feels that a person is in need of help.
Meme Zainal said the department conducts social intervention programmes when large numbers of people are affected by catastrophes such as fire, floods and landslides.
"We provide various types of help including financial assistance. If we feel that someone needs counselling, we will conduct sessions for that person to reduce the trauma," she said.