Last year alone, Contact Helpline, a local suicide prevention call center, fielded 10,000 calls from people in distress or contemplating suicide, but some larger centers field that number in just one week.

Katrina Sunivelle has been the director of Contact Helpline since November 2012 and has been with the organization in some capacity since 2006. She spoke to the Exchange Club of Columbus on Thursday about the duties and accreditation of Contact Helpline and the future of mental health assistance in the country.

Contact Helpline is internationally accredited, and staff and volunteers must complete appropriate training. While the local center has not dealt with anyone in another country, it helps international students at Mississippi University for Women and Mississippi State University. The volunteers and staff help people from all over the entire country deal with mental health crises and specialize in suicide prevention.

“Our accreditation is with the International Counselor Helpline, and there are over 200 centers accredited by them,” Sunivelle said. “It happens every five years. They used to come down but with COVID, I’ve had to send them everything. As a matter of fact, this is our accreditation year. I send them everything about how we train and making sure we’re compliant with the board. Everything has to be by the book.”

Beginning July 16, dialing 9-8-8 on a phone from anywhere in the United States will provide access to Lifeline, a mental health and suicide prevention hotline.

Lifeline is known by many as 1-800-273-8255. The new 9-8-8 will not eliminate the current number for Lifeline, but rather it will work alongside the number. Contact Helpline will be one of the two centers in Mississippi that work with the text and chat lines.

“In July, we’re gonna be operating as a text and chat center (as well as call center),” Sunivelle said. “Additionally, anyone can text from their phones, and we can chat back within our computers. We received the funding for that so we will need to answer those texts and chats. Only two centers in Mississippi received that (funding). There is one in Jackson, and there’s us.”

In order to answer calls, volunteers must go through 40 hours of the training from local mental health professionals, and they must undergo a background check. When 9-8-8 goes into effect, Contact Helpline will need more help to field calls, so the nonprofit is pursuing funding to acquire more staff.

The crisis hotline is available 24/7, and staff and volunteers can work from home or wherever they might be to answer calls when someone is in a time of need. Contact Helpline uses technology that allows calls to be forwarded to cell phones or computers should that volunteer opt into that. There also is an on-site center where volunteers can field calls.

Talking to so many people dealing with heavy issues such as suicidal thoughts and tendencies can take its toll on those manning the hotline, so Contact Helpline employees try to do as much as they can to help those answering the call not get burned out.

“Self care is important, and we also debrief with each other,” Sunivelle said. “We talk about our calls, and we try to make sure they don’t (experience burnout). We try to provide snacks in the room or we support staff (that are) working alone with the volunteers. We try to encourage them. If you work in a suicide line, you can’t work it every day. You have to change out your mind, and we’re very supportive of each other.”

Contact Helpline is looking for volunteers and those interested can visit contacthelplinegtrms.org.

If mental health assistance is needed, dial 662-323-4357.

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