Volunteer to be a Digital Crisis Supporter

This video will give you more insight into what it's like to be a Digital Crisis Supporter. It provides additional information on what to expect and you will see some of our digital support volunteers share about their experiences.

Video addendum: Whilst a 2 year commitment from our volunteers contributes enormously toward ensuring we can provide consistent support to our Help Seekers, we understand this is not always possible. Given the time invested in training volunteer, we appreciate a minimum commitment from individual volunteers of 92 service hours per year based on 4 hrs per fortnight or an average of two 4-hour shifts a month.

You will be assigned a Team Leader who will coach you throughout your training, placement and even once you are a fully trained Crisis Supporter. In addition, you will always have support while on shift, as one of our qualified In-Shift Supervisors will be there to ask questions, intervene where necessary and debrief with you when you finish your shift.

• Make sure you understand the commitment involved in becoming a Crisis Supporter
• Register your interest and/or attend an information session
• Complete and submit your application. You will be asked to provide reference details, a Working with Children /Vulnerable People Check and a Police Check. For digital support volunteering, Lifeline uses a specific provider and does not accept police checks from other providers - details are supplied during the application process. (Note that these checks are at your own cost). 
• Accept our offer to join the Lifeline family.
• Join the next available training date (we will notify you of the date once you have accepted your offer)

When volunteering for the Lifeline Text Service, either a PC or Mac computer can be used, requiring the latest operating system available. The minimum system requirement for a Mac is macOS10.14 or later; and a free app to connect to the remote desktop, Microsoft Remote Desktop . For PC the suggested system requirement is an up-to-date version of Windows, general a computer less than 6 years old.

It is highly recommended to have two computer monitors/screens, to run the text platform on one monitor, and on the second monitor to runs Teams, the program that we use to communicate with each other on shift. If you don’t have two monitors, then having a smartphone on shift as a back-up is important so that you can keep in contact with your shift supervisor, in case you have problems with Teams. It is also good if you have a camera with your computer, so that during training and once volunteering, you are able to chat face to face with your team leader or shift supervisor.

Having a stable and reliable internet connection is very important when considering volunteering for the Lifeline Text Service. It is useful to know the upload and download speed of your internet, and this can be easily checked using any internet speed check tool .

If you have any problems with your internet, it is also possible to hotspot your phone and all programs needed will run smoothly as required.

We welcome all applicants considering becoming a Digital Crisis Supporter and due to the flexibility of the role can support a variety of accessibility needs. Please send us through an email if you have any specific questions.

Becoming a Digital Crisis Supporter is perfect for those living in regional/remote areas in Australia. You can be located anywhere Australia-wide as long as you have the appropriate computer equipment and a stable and reliable internet connection.

Unfortunately, due to our security requirements and IT systems, we are not able to accept overseas applicants.

If you are interested in volunteering as a Digital Crisis Supporter for Lifeline to complete the student placement component of your tertiary course – please read the information below.

IMPORTANT NOTE: We have limited capacity to support tertiary students beyond standard Crisis Supporter volunteering. Please also check that Crisis Support volunteering meets your education institution’s requirements. For further information contact digitalplacement@lifeline.org.au

STUDENT PLACEMENT COMMITMENT To undertake a tertiary student placement with Lifeline's digital service, the following commitment is required:

1. Complete Lifeline's digital crisis supporter training and placement.
2. Complete a minimum of 100 hours of digital service delivery* - not including training.
3. Complete 75% of shifts between the hours of 6pm – 6am.

Please note:

• Lifeline's crisis support services are non-clinical.
• Our ability to supervise tertiary placement students is limited to our standard service delivery in-shift supervision and quarterly group supervision.
• Placement with our digital service means there is no face-to-face contact with clients, ongoing case management, or physical office space.
• All placement hours will be completed on a digital online platform at the placement student's location.
• We do not have the capacity to provide competency feedback to academic staff.
• It is the responsibility of the student to maintain any logbooks or time sheets and contact a team leader for verification once the required placement hours have been completed.
• Please ensure your education institution approves of Crisis Supporter hours for tertiary student placement hours.
• If required placement hours are less than our minimum commitment, we ask that a minimum of 100 hours of service* are completed in total, given the investment in training provided.

MORE ABOUT DIGITAL CRISIS SUPPORTER TRAINING

• Our digital services online training program is self-guided with approximately 4.5 hours of eLearning recommended per week depending on your schedule and pace. Support is provided on request.
• Volunteers are allocated a Training Lead at the commencement of their training.
• The recommended completion time for the training program is 8 to 12 weeks, which includes 5 to 8 weeks of self-paced eLearning; and 2 to 4 weeks of placement.
• A Training Completion Certificate is available after 52 service hours (approximately 13 Crisis Supporter shifts) are logged.
• Once an offer to volunteer is accepted within the volunteer hub (Rosterfy), applicants can then self-select into a training cohort. There are usually a range of start dates to select from.

Below are some of the competencies our Crisis Supporters aim to develop during training: General skills list: Connection, Rapport, Listening, Collaboration, Empowerment, Supportive, Context, Timing, Safety, Flexibility, Discernment, Emergency Action A combination of training and on-service experience provides volunteers with the opportunity to develop the following skills:

• Establishing a connection.
• Building rapport and trust with help seekers.
• Remaining present with help seekers whilst sitting with their distress.
• Uncovering and working collaboratively with help seekers to identify strengths, resources, and external supports.
• Building appropriate reframing and other micro skills.
• Empowering of help seekers.
• Supporting help seekers to reduce barriers.
• Asking and talking about suicide with good context and timing in a supportive manner.
• Creating safety plans in collaboration with help seekers.
• Responding to crime and emergency issues.

Students develop the following micro skills as crisis supporters:

• Active listening
• Reflection of feelings
• Open and closed questions
• Paraphrasing
• Summarising
• Reframing
• Tentative challenges