How is volunteering at a crisis text line viewed?

[YourAveragePremed]

As a disclaimer, I'm very against someone pursuing a volunteering activity for the sole purpose of how ADCOMs would view it. With that said, I'm currently exploring various volunteering opportunities that I would find equally worthwhile to pursue, but there's obviously preference to the one that puts me in a better spot down the line. Assuming that they all have a similar impact on me (which would also be reflected in my writing), would volunteering at a CTL be viewed as 'inferior' to more traditional volunteerism? I think it's a really convenient way to volunteer and gain hours. Thanks for the advice

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[cj_cregg]

Generally, volunteer experiences where you are working directly (i.e. face-to-face) with people from underserved communities and/or people who are different from yourself are looked upon most favorably.

 

[fd25]

I think there is definitely a lot of value in volunteering face-to-face (for obvious reasons). However, if you are also able to do Crisis Text Line, and if you have any genuine interest in it, I think it is a great opportunity. I have been involved with them as a crisis counselor for a while now. I didn't think it would mean as much to me as it has, but it has really done a lot for my growth as a person. Learning about a person's deepest vulnerabilities in such a short period of time while texting is a really unique experience, and it teaches a lot about the type of situations faced by people from different backgrounds, as well as the way that their access, or lack thereof, to various resources can affect the way they are able to cope and manage stressors in their life.

Obviously don't do it if this doesn't sound meaningful to you, but I wouldn't say that CTL carries less value just because it isn't face to face. It is just a different type of value. Face-to-face is super important too so I'm not saying not to get that

 

[koyemu]

What are the requirements/criterion to apply for the crisis text line? I might be interested. Also, why would it carry less value?

 

[fd25]

What are the requirements/criterion to apply for the crisis text line? I might be interested. Also, why would it carry less value?

I think people only say "less value" in reference to doing Crisis Text Line only and no other additional volunteering work. Crisis Text Line is valuable, but there are also other skills you can learn and work on by doing in-person volunteering too.

As far as the requirements, I think you just need to be in college (or graduated), and you fill out an application with some short responses explaining why you would like to be a crisis counselor and why you think you would be a good fit. Once they accept you, you need to complete a 30 hour training course. They receive a ton of applications I believe, so they only open their application window periodically. You just need to be diligent about checking back and applying as soon as they have the application open!

 

[Emh_omega-323]

I've always wondered a little about pre-meds doing suicide text/phone lines as an EC... It just maybe seems like college kids pursuing it for med school aren't equipped or properly motivativated to be literally the last line of defense between life and death for someone.

I am sure there are lots of wonderful premed volunteers doing a great job. Ive just seen some volunteers at the ER I'm at really not take the responsibility seriously who are clearly just doing it for the hours. It scares me to imagine a suicidal person reaching out to those folks in their hour of need.

Id love to hear experiences to the contrary!

 

[fd25]

I've always wondered a little about pre-meds doing suicide text/phone lines as an EC... It just maybe seems like college kids pursuing it for med school aren't equipped or properly motivativated to be literally the last line of defense between life and death for someone.

I am sure there are lots of wonderful premed volunteers doing a great job. Ive just seen some volunteers at the ER I'm at really not take the responsibility seriously who are clearly just doing it for the hours. It scares me to imagine a suicidal person reaching out to those folks in their hour of need.

Id love to hear experiences to the contrary!

I definitely understand where you are coming from as far as that is concerned. That very fact scares me too sometimes. Many people who text in to CTL are in truly dangerous situations, so I always feel the pressure of wanting to do the best possible job of getting them the help they need in that very moment. While I can't speak for other services or phone lines, at CTL we always have supervisors monitoring all of the conversations, and these supervisors are paid, trained professionals who are skilled in social work/therapy/emotional management and who know how to handle the life-or-death situations. If something ever comes up in a conversation where we deem a texter as imminent risk of self-harm or harm to others, these supervisors are there to immediately provide assistance and activate an emergency response if the texter wishes to provide their information.

I can definitely see how people who are doing this for the wrong reasons may not respond appropriately, but I think that is where it becomes very important for these organizations to thoroughly screen people, offer adequate training material, and implement continuous quality improvement to ensure that counselors are doing a great job.

 

[reinforced]

I've always wondered a little about pre-meds doing suicide text/phone lines as an EC... It just maybe seems like college kids pursuing it for med school aren't equipped or properly motivativated to be literally the last line of defense between life and death for someone.

I am sure there are lots of wonderful premed volunteers doing a great job. Ive just seen some volunteers at the ER I'm at really not take the responsibility seriously who are clearly just doing it for the hours. It scares me to imagine a suicidal person reaching out to those folks in their hour of need.

Id love to hear experiences to the contrary!

I totally agree and am wary of that too. However, I've spent the last two years on a crisis line, and one of my biggest takeaways was that, although what you say and how you say it is important, your presence on the line itself and simply having a conversation with someone at their low is what can make the most impact. And I think anyone with a shred of empathy is qualified enough to accomplish that task, mainly because my line has professionals (social workers and therapists) who we can contact at any time if a caller is at imminent risk.

Someone would have to be unbelievably negligent to do a poor job, and I would hope the organization's quality control checks occured frequently enough (my line did them almost weekly) to filter them out.