Point Loma Nazarene University’s Counseling Center began implementing the “Stepped Care” therapeutic model last semester. Alongside the group services being offered, the model serves to implement a diverse set of resources to provide students with a variety of methods to meet their mental health needs.
Melanie Wolf, dean of student care, said that the difference between this model of counseling and the prior format is that the Stepped Care model meets a more diverse set of student needs and is also personalized to individual student needs. The prior model, direct counseling services, only offered individual counseling to students, limited to up to eight counseling sessions per student.
She said that the Counseling Center uses the Therapy Assistance Online (TAO) app to provide students with resources such as workshops, consultations and referrals to services both on and off campus.
Students can seek counseling services by completing a request form through the PLNU website, myPLNU or by obtaining a form in person. After this step, the counseling office receives the request and assigns the student to one of the mental health counselors for an initial screening. From the screening, the counselor will inquire about the student’s mental health history as well as their reasons for wanting support and what goals they hope to achieve.
“Counselors collaborate with students to discern goals for counseling and connect them to on-campus resources and counseling services that best meet their goals,” Wolf said.
According to Bucky Bateman, mental health counselor supervisor, the Counseling Center has more tools to assist students as a result of the new model. Because not every student may benefit from one-on-one talk therapy, there are other modalities including workshops, process groups and educational resources from the TAO app. These groups include: Peace of Mind, Anxiety Management Group, Living in Color, Men’s Group and Grief Support Group. The Stepped Care model gives students many avenues to find care, from basic information to extensive support through counseling referrals.
“We’ve heard great feedback from students who’ve engaged in services so far,” Bateman said. “It’s exciting to see students finding multiple entry points and gaining support around mental health. This model provides rich flexibility and creativity in reaching the diverse needs of our student body.”
Madison Kall, a second-year education major, who frequently attends on-campus counseling, said that hearing about this new counseling model made her feel excited and more likely to utilize the Counseling Center’s resources.
She said the prior model felt less personalized and an obstacle to receiving the support she was looking for. When the Counseling Center only offered resources of limited therapy sessions, it discouraged her from going because the limited sessions were not beneficial to her when she sought more consistent support. A few of her counselors also did not provide outside referrals, which made it difficult for her to know where exactly to turn for the care she needed.
“My mental health issues are not limited,” Kall said. “There are days when it is worse, and sometimes I could use the support. Having that support during the entirety of my mental health journey rather than having the resources limited is really helpful.”
“It improves my attitude on it and makes me feel like they care for the students and aren’t limiting the support they give us,” she said.
For more information, students can go to the Counseling Center webpage: my.pointloma.edu/pages/counseling-center.
Tessa Balc