Counselor, too?

[MrNurse(x2)]

I was wondering how many out there are the lone non-educational staff and are called on for multiple roles? I have become both the nurse and counselor at my school. The counselor we had did not return this year. Sadder still to watch it die than never to have known it. I get all the anxious little snowflakes that are calm right up to the point I suggest returning to class. Those are the easy ones, I had to contact our local youth services bureau, an extension of the health department for a student with harm ideation. I have reached out to NAMI for guidance, but still feel ill equipped. Administrators are glad I am here and able to deal better than they can, but sometimes I feel lost. I do have a counselor I can consult.

[DEgalRN]

DEgalRN,

I don't want hack, but I would encourage you to check out SPRC.org

Suicide Prevention Resource Center has great resources including those for school programs.

Thank you. I'll check out that site. I also ordered Preventing Suicide: A Toolkit for High Schools from SAMHSA which is really informational. I honestly had no idea what I was getting into in terms of mental health in my high school. It's a learning curve for sure, and one that scares me since it could literally be life or death.

[MrNurse(x2), ADN]

Thank you. I'll check out that site. I also ordered Preventing Suicide: A Toolkit for High Schools from SAMHSA which is really informational. I honestly had no idea what I was getting into in terms of mental health in my high school. It's a learning curve for sure, and one that scares me since it could literally be life or death.

NAMI has a few programs, depending where you are. My county office is one person, but the state level was able to provide me with a program called Say It Out Loud that is a great presentation to do with the kids. It works at showing mental illness as an illness and not a stigma. They also have a presentation that the local chapters run if possible. Their website is nami.org