Students helping students

Students in the School of Social Work spend a significant amount of time in field placements each year, learning to apply theory to practice in a variety of social service settings.

By supporting clients in child welfare agencies, community health centres, food banks, legal clinics, not-for-profits, and settlement organizations, students gain valuable hands-on experience that prepares them for professional practice.

When COVID-19 hit, education moved online, and the school had to find ways to continue providing students with practical experience virtually. Additionally, many students struggled with increased anxiety and depression related to the challenges and isolation of the pandemic. 

In order to address the needs of students --- both for virtual field education and increased mental health support -- the school piloted the Peer Led Mutual Aid Program in Winter 2021.

“This was a way to develop field placements remotely for students as a result of the pandemic and as a result of the implications of the pandemic,” said Valerie Borum, director of the School of Social Work. “It was an opportunity for students to provide support to their peers … and to gain some clinical skills.” 

Initially, 30 undergraduate and graduate students participated in the pilot project. Each week, students gathered online with their field education supervisors to discuss course readings, participate in simulations, hear from guest speakers and develop their clinical skills. 

Claudia Jones, a recent graduate of the master of social work program, participated in the program as a peer facilitator. “I received a lot of fantastic training in terms of conflict resolution, how to do assessments, how to do risk management, how to help students with academic concerns, social isolation, stress, anxiety and group facilitation skills,” she said. 

Abisola Asha, another recent graduate of the master of social work program, also learned relevant, practical skills. “We did training, trauma-informed care, we learned about family counselling, and about various approaches to better support our clients during a pandemic, including newcomers, the queer community, the Black community and various marginalized communities,” she said. “We were learning, but also putting those learnings into practice.” 

Students practiced their skills during simulations with trained actors that explored different scenarios they would likely encounter in their professional practice. For example, one simulation explored a situation where newcomers living in a low-income neighbourhood had issues with the foodbank. Another explored how to better support people who had lost their jobs during the pandemic and were struggling to get back on their feet. 

Once the students had been adequately trained, they began to offer virtual support to their peers -- fellow students in the Faculty of Community Services -- via individual or group counselling sessions. 

Students reaching out for support often felt disconnected from their friends, family, community and fellow students. “The disconnection that they felt translated later on in a lot of anxiety, depression, isolation, and feelings of hopelessness,” said Jones.

The peer to peer model was valuable in that the students providing support could really understand what their fellow students were going through. “I was not only a mental health provider,” explained Jones, “I was a peer ... not only were we providing support and counselling for our peers, but we were also going through exactly the same challenges that they were going through … we were in their shoes, but we were also clinically supervised and trained.”  

“I think it’s great to have your peers talk to you about their experiences and challenges,” said Asha. “It validates what you’re going through at that moment.”

While in-person social services are now gradually returning, virtual service provision is likely here to stay, and will remain an important part of the field education offerings at the school going forward. 

“The landscape, even worldwide but definitely within the profession of social work, has changed,” said Borum. “The provision of virtual services will continue. We’re not going to be able to turn that clock back. That skill set is important for students to have upon graduation.”

“There was one fundamental thing that I learned, which is to be able to provide mental health services in a virtual setting,” said Jones. “I believe that by being able to provide this in a virtual setting, we have added a very valuable skill that even long after the pandemic is gone, we will still be using.” 

One benefit of virtual support? It is often more accessible to certain populations, including disabled people or people for whom it may not be safe to leave their home to seek care. “There are so many more people that are using these possibilities of receiving mental health support virtually, just because they are able to access this in an easier way,” explained Jones.

Since taking off as a pilot project, more than 50 students have participated in the program as peer facilitators. 

If you are an undergraduate or graduate student who is experiencing challenges and would like support, visit the Peer Led Mutual Aid Support Group website to learn more and book an appointment. You can also visit the Mental Health and Wellbeing website to find out about other supports available at the university.