University of the South Pacific (USP) has opened their counselling centre to provide counselling services after hours.

The service is specifically open to USP students and staff only.

However those outside the USP community have benefitted indirectly via the counselling programmes.

The counselling programmes include psychological help kits, life coaching programmes, study tips, dating and relationship with marital programmes, mental health and stress busters tips, etc.

The practical application of these programmes for the USP community can be applied and generalised to family and friends outside USP.

The counselling team can be contacted at 921-8698 or via viber.

Skype services are also available for where students and staff in other campus can also contact Counsellor Nicholas Fuata or Counsellor Saimone Tuni via skype on their respective ID’s.

USP group manager campus life Glenn Pope said: “This was a long overdue development but now we have opened up the helpline for USP staff and students after hours that will help the needs of students and staff not just locally but all USP regional campuses as well through normal phone calls, video calls and viber messages and calls.”

USP counsellor Nicholas Fuata said: “Generally the USP Counselling Centre facilitates a student’s journey at the University of the South Pacific by addressing their academic, career and social/emotional development needs by designing, implementing, evaluating and enhancing a comprehensive counselling programme.”

The Counselling Centre with the assistance of Campus life have posted a psychological help kits to assist USP staff and students who have had experienced any form of trauma with regards to the natural disaster.

Some students who were affected by the recent cyclones and attend Laucala Campus have visited the centre for face to face counselling and were referred to the counsellors via other USP departments at Laucala Campus.

Also the Counselling Centre has created a talanoa session at Laucala Campus that will address issues with regards to natural disasters and the effects of trauma on an individual and his/her community.

Edited by Jonathan Bryce

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