Telephone counseling - Loneliness and depression challenge Thuringian pastors
Thuringia's telephone counseling services can no longer keep up with the workload. On average, callers need ten to twelve attempts to reach the counseling service, which is around twice as many as before the coronavirus pandemic, said Uta Milosevic, head of the Erfurt counseling service. As soon as the volunteers hung up, the phone rang again. Christiane Sachse, head of the East Thuringia telephone helpline, reported similar
No precise statistics were yet available for 2023 - but it can be assumed that the trend of previous years has stabilized, the two pastoral workers explained. In 2022, around 8,300 callers were counted in Erfurt and 6,500 in East Thuringia. This was significantly more than in 2019.
Current crises hardly play a role
The main concerns were physical complaints, loneliness or depressive moods. Current issues such as the war in Ukraine or the energy crisis, on the other hand, hardly played a role. A large proportion of people called the counselors repeatedly. "For the most part, these were lonely people who often find the telephone counseling service to be their only point of contact," said the Erfurt office.
Over a third of callers also mention mental illness in their conversations, and this number has increased in recent years. Around five percent also mentioned suicidal thoughts and around one percent suicidal intentions. Contrary to fears, this proportion has not increased due to coronavirus.
According to Milosevic, therapists, psychiatrists and GPs still recommend that their patients call the telephone helpline in the evening or at the weekend. Alongside the police and emergency services, they are the only number that can be reached around the clock. "That's a big responsibility. Let's see how much longer it works," says Milosevic.
Difficult search for volunteers
Both Sachse and Milosevic said that the search for volunteers is becoming increasingly difficult. "There is a great need, but the work is very meaningful," said Sachse. According to Milosevic, the volunteers undergo 120 hours of training and continuous professional development. They also receive regular supervision on difficult topics. Older people in particular might have time for such a time-consuming volunteer role with their pension - but recently she has heard more and more that people would like to take part, but need to earn money in addition to their pension.
Milosevic is pinning her hopes on negotiations about a psychiatric crisis service in the country, which could provide relief. There would then be professionals at the other end of the line. "But that will still be a long way off. After all, who will pay for the psychiatrists' night hours?"
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Source: www.stern.de
