The aim of this training programme is to provide information and appropriate skills to participants to identify and support distressed students. This training course makes use of the University of Malta staff guidelines: Supporting Suicidal and/or Severely Distressed Students, as a reference. This training offers an opportunity for staff to familiarise with these guidelines and take appropriate action to seek professional help in situations when a student is showing signs of suicidal behaviour or severe distress.
The course is interactive and the training entails a variety of teaching styles and tools that participants can easily adopt while interacting with students. This training is divided into two sessions of three hours each and participants need to attend both the training session and the workshop to successfully complete this course. Each participant will receive the relevant training material and a certificate of attendance.
Ms Charmaine Mifsud Cardona (Psychotherapist and family therapist)
Ms Donatella Pace Olivari (Social Worker)
Dr Elena Borg (Psychotherapist)
Ms Sandra Schembri Wismayer (Psychotherapist)
Target Audience: UM members of staff. The maximum capacity for this course is of 15 participants.
Session duration: 3 hours
Topics covered:
This training workshop is designed as a follow-up of the training offered: Supporting suicidal and severely distressed students. The aim of this training is to support staff by providing them with useful basic interpersonal communication skills, such as the use of active listening to support severely distressed students. It offers a space to learn and practice how to approach and talk to students in distress and guide them to seek professional help. A distinction is made between a crisis intervention in an emergency situation where there is imminent risk of suicide and a situation where one is concerned about a student’s wellbeing but is not a crisis.
The training shall be divided into two main parts. The first part consists of a presentation on active listening skills and techniques of how to talk to and empower suicidal and/or severely distressed students to seek help, delivered by Ms Charmaine Mifsud Cardona. The second part includes a brief overview of the staff guidelines booklet provided by the University of Malta – Supporting suicidal and/or severely distressed student, which will be delivered by Dr Marta Sant. Participants will have some time for a brief Q&A session with Dr Sant, who has developed these guidelines.
