Responding to Distressed Students
A Guide For Staff

Contents

• Introduction
• Recognising signs of distress
• Responding to a student who is distressed
• Managing a serious situation
• Responding to a student who is suicidal
• Referral to a counsellor
• Responding to a student who is threatening the safety of others
• After the event
• Conclusion
• Useful resources

Introduction

In your day to day teaching, you may encounter students who are experiencing a good deal of stress as they try to balance the demands of study with other issues in their lives such as relationships, family, work, health, social or money matters. Some students may become quite distressed and show signs of lethargy, sadness or anger. They may behave in ways that affect the learning environment in your class and that may even threaten your safety and that of your students. Distress affects educational outcomes. Early recognition that a student is distressed can help you take preventative action to reduce the impact on you and the student. There are also times when a serious situation with a distressed student develops without warning and you must take immediate action.

Recognising signs of distress

Students arrive at university with different life experiences and with expectations shaped by culture, ethnicity, social class, gender and geographical location, and perhaps by disability. It is unlikely that any two people will express distress in the same way. At times of high stress some students will limit their contact with people and become isolated while others will seek out individuals to whom they can express their concerns and frustrations. Some obvious signs that may indicate distress include:

• lethargy, falling asleep in class
• marked changes in personal dress and hygiene
• changes from consistently good grades to unaccountably poor performances
• excessive absences, especially if the student has previously demonstrated consistent class attendance
• requests for special consideration (e.g. deadline extension), especially if the student appears uncomfortable or highly emotional when questioned about the reasons for the request
• crying, or swollen/red eyes.

Any of these signs, particularly if they occur together and on more than one occasion, send a warning that the situation warrants further investigation. In the first instance, you could engage the student in a discussion about their study and try to assess whether the warning signs indicate a minor or more serious problem. It may be possible to resolve the problem immediately by negotiating with the student. If the situation appears more serious, or outside of your area of expertise, you may refer the student to a counsellor, a learning adviser or other appropriate resource in the University.

There are times when you will become aware of significant events in the life of a student such as financial problems, a psychological disorder, lack of accommodation, ill health, substance abuse, family disruptions or the death of someone close to them. In such cases it is appropriate to refer the student to a counsellor to assist them to access any support required. In a small number of extreme cases, a student may exhibit verbal and/or physical aggression or make references to suicide or homicide. The section below titled 'Managing a serious situation' provides some guidelines on how to deal with such situations.

Between these two extremes, however, there are various kinds of distress you may need to respond to and the following section provides some guidelines for how you can manage these interactions.

Responding to a student who is distressed

How you respond to an individual student will depend upon the nature and level of their distress. A student suffering low levels of distress is likely to benefit from a timely and caring response from you. You might respond to the student by following the steps below.

Step 1: Understand the issue(s)

When you talk to the student, you can help both you and the student to understand the issue(s) by:

• providing some privacy
• being non-judgmental
• listening respectfully
• paraphrasing, summarising and clarifying what the student is saying (i.e. repeating the meaning of what you understand the student is saying so that both of you are clear about what is being said)

Step 2: Consider what assistance you can provide

Such assistance might include:

• extensions for assignments
• alternative assessment arrangements
• explanation of course content or assessment requirements
• support in dealing with harassment
• support in dealing with a grievance.

Step 3: Consider what assistance others can provide and refer the student

Such assistance and referrals may include:

• support in developing study skills – refer to the Centre for Learning and Professional Development
• support to address personal issues – refer to the Student Counselling Service
• support in resolving grievances – initially handle within the area; if the student requires support refer to Education and Welfare Officer or to a Student Representative at the Students Association
• emergency financial support, accommodation difficulties – refer to Education and Welfare Officers at Student Care
• support related to a disability – refer to the Disability Advisors at theDisability Service
• general advice and support for International students – refer to an International Student Adviser at the International Student Office.

Step 4: Follow up

Make a follow up time for the student to talk with you again to review progress towards resolving the issue(s). With permission from the student, you may find it helpful to get feedback from the relevant student services staff member.

Step 5: Inform relevant people

Think about whether you need to inform the Head of School, Course Co-ordinator, or other academic staff teaching the student. Be clear about the level of detail to be reported. Consider the issue of confidentiality before passing on any information. It is advisable to get student permission before disclosing their personal information to a third party.

Step 6: Keep a record

It is useful to make a file note of your interaction with the student, including concerns raised by the student and your response. If you see the student again you will have the necessary background information to refer to. It can assist in providing accurate information to appropriate people. It can also offer protection if the student lodges a complaint.

Mananging a serious situation

Sometimes a student may be highly distressed and will disrupt your class or threaten to harm her or himself or others.

• Calm the situation as much as possible.
• Stay as composed and relaxed as possible.
• Maintain a quiet and reassuring voice.
• If possible provide some privacy for the student.
• Try to communicate with the student by:
  • acknowledging their feelings
  • paraphrasing what they are saying.
  • requesting that they modify their behaviour
  • suggesting they talk with a counsellor.

Depending on the level of distress, the student may calm down enough for you to revert to the previous steps for Responding to a student who is distressed. If however the student continues to be at risk to self or others you may need to take the following steps.

Responding to a student who is suicidal

Any person contemplating suicide is in enormous emotional pain and is unable to find solutions to their pain. You have a crucial role in providing immediate support, sound advise and help. Crisis intervention is not counselling or therapy. The goal in crisis intervention is to achieve problem management rather than problem resolution. It is facilitating a safe place for the student, a sense of equilibrium, and directional support by referring them to appropriate professionals.

Step 1: Listen

Actively, calmly and non-judgementally.

Step 2: Assess Risk

Assess the present state of the student's mental and emotional condition - do this by getting as much information about the crisis situation, their thoughts, past actions and plans.

Step 3: Take Charge

• Ensure Safety
  If the person is actively or dangerously suicidal, that is that they have a plan and means to end their life, stay with them and get help immediately. Contact either the Counselling Service, the Health Service, or a 24 hour telephone counselling service for immediate help.
  If they are contemplating suicide make it clear to the student that you are concerned about their well being and safety and that you want to be sure that they will be all right. A suicidal person often has difficulty in thinking clearly and following through on plans alternative to their suicidal plan. Together explore possibilities that are acceptable to both of you. Make the person aware that you will be obliged to seek help if their intention is detrimental to themselves. Confidentiality does not apply to suicide.
• Provide support
  A suicidal person often perceives they have no support. Show willingness to help & take all threats seriously. Aim to establish a state of relative calm by reassuring the student that you are there to support and help them.
• Involve others
  Help the student identify other caring adults with whom the person can relate.
• Examine alternatives
  Suicidal people feel overwhelmed with their problems. Encourage problem solving by helping the person to break down their problem(s) into more manageable pieces. Focus on handling one hour/day/problem at a time.
  Where possible help the student find alternatives to the immediate problems precipitated by the crisis. For example, if the student needs emergency accommodation or finance speak to Welfare Officers or Counsellors. Do not provide housing or finance yourself – that is not your role and may alter your important relationship as academic to this person.
• Make Plans
  Make clear plans with the student about what their next steps will be. You may need to write these down for the distressed student because they may not recall all the details of the discussion.
• Obtain Commitment
  Obtain a commitment from the student that they are going to follow the steps you've both agreed on.

Step 4: Refer Out

At any time during the interaction you may decide that, because of the level of distress or the nature of the issues raised, you should refer the student to a Counsellor.

Referral to a Counsellor

It is advisable to inform the student that you would like to refer them to a counsellor and offer to make the first contact.
You can refer the student to a Counsellor by:

• dialling 35663 – outline the urgency of the matter and the reception staff member will advise you accordingly
• accompanying the student to Counselling, the ground floor, Horace Lamb Building, to assist the student to make contact with Counselling staff
• advising the student to see a Counsellor, you may choose to write a short note outlining your understanding of the problem – this gives the Counsellors some background information and feeling of continuity for the student
• contacting a Counsellor directly by telephone – there is a Duty Counsellor on duty every weekday from 9am-5pm, during term time. Depending on the urgency of the situation, they will either speak to you immediately or give you a call back that day.

Responding to a student who is threatening the safety of others

Step 1: Contact an authorised person and/or Security

When a student does not respond positively to your attempts to calm the situation, or your requests for them to moderate their behaviour or talk with a counsellor, you need to take steps to safeguard your safety, the safety of the student and the safety of any other students in the vicinity. It may be appropriate to advise others to leave the area if the student posing the threat is unwilling to leave themselves.

Even if you manage to calm the situation it may still be appropriate to call Security to ensure the safety of all concerned and to assist the student to access appropriate support.  You can contact Security on 35444.

Where the student is injured or threatening harm first call Emergency Services on 000 and then call Security by dialling 35444 or request a staff member or student to contact Security. Explain clearly to Security what has happened, your concerns and that you have contacted Emergency Services. You can advise Security what is being done by Emergency Services. 

Step 2: Inform relevant people and keep a record

Following serious incidents such as this it is advisable to inform your Head of School.

It is useful to make a file note of your interaction with the student and others. If you see the student again you will have the necessary background information to refer to. It can assist in providing accurate information to appropriate people. It can also be a protection if the student lodges a complaint.

After the Event

Dealing with a distressed student is likely to impact on you and may increase your level of stress. After the event it may be helpful to:

• give yourself some time and space to think through what has occurred
• relax (e.g. go for a walk; use strategies that have worked for you in the past)
• talk it through with someone who will have some understanding of the situation – you should do this without breaking confidentiality, i.e. not using the student's name or any other information which will identify the student to the third party
• Inform the Manager, Counselling & Disability Services 35663 to enable follow up with the student if appropriate
• talk it through with staff counsellors from the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) if it has been a particularly stressful experience. The University has contracted EAP to provide professional confidential counselling services for staff
• decide whether you need to see the student again – if so, contact the student and make an appointment. You can talk this through with the Counselling Service on 35663
• remind yourself that you cannot control all outcomes – whilst you must do the best you can for each individual, there may be a limit to how much you can help.

Conclusion

If, as a staff member, you find it necessary to respond to students who are distressed, the University supports you in dealing with these situations through the policies, procedures and services outlined here. Hopefully this will enable you to manage difficult interactions effectively and achieve positive outcomes for both you and the student.

Useful Resources

• Student Complaints and Appeals
• OH&S Policies