Inquire sensitively about the child or young person’s circumstances
The first step in supporting a child or young person you’ve noticed might be experiencing a mental health challenge is to have a conversation.
There are a range of strategies on how to appropriately inquire about a child or young person’s circumstances, and how these are affecting them. It will be important to consider the time and place for the conversation, and to consider the language used during the conversation.
You should also remember to have the conversation within the context of your community’s policies and procedures and take care of yourself after the conversation.
What you'll learn through this module
- Consider and respond to impacts of disclosures on your own mental health
- Describe when it is appropriate to have conversations with children and young people about their mental health
- Recognise the importance of using sensitive and developmentally appropriate language when discussing concerns about mental health
- Identify what existing policies and processes you need to consider before having the conversation
- Understand your role and your limits
- Know what to do if a conversation doesn’t go well
- Recognise when others need to be involved
Notepad
If you’re a PC or Mac user, there’s a notepad feature for you to record notes, actions or discussion points for each topic. If you’re sharing a computer with your team, your notes will be available for everyone to view. If you wish to keep your notes private, please save and delete your notes each time you finish your session. There’s more information in the Notepad user guide on the right.