New volunteers with Lifeline Central West will undergo a fast-tracked training program that could see them answering calls to the crisis helpline within a month.
Chief executive Stephanie Robinson says traditional volunteer training takes about 14 weeks, but the new training program will be much faster thanks to a new hybrid model.
"There will be the opportunity to do the majority of it via [video conferencing app] Zoom, and also an eLearning platform," Ms Robinson said.
"There will be some other stuff that we just have to tweak to get it completed, but it means that people will actually be able to be on the phones, we're thinking, within about a four-week period."
Ms Robinson said the online delivery had the capacity to take a higher number of new recruits than usual, and the participants could be spread across various locations.
The first of the fast-tracked volunteer training courses is set to begin in May.
Rise in crisis calls
Nationally, Lifeline has seen a huge spike in calls from people seeking assistance with their mental health over recent months.
Ms Robinson said this was due to several major disruptions — severe drought, a devastating bushfire season over the summer, and the outbreak of COVID-19.
Normally Lifeline would take about 2,200 calls daily, but Ms Robinson said the service saw an increase of 10-14 per cent during the fires.
That rate had increased again since the pandemic began.
"We're now up around the bit-over 3,000 calls a day on average, so a significant increase," she said.
"And of course, there's also text and a chat service as well, so it's been a very big challenge for us as an organisation to meet that demand."
The demand for Lifeline's service has led to financial assistance from the State Government to help it through the coming months.
Ms Robinson says funding is being provided for at least six months to pay volunteers for some of their shifts.
Existing Lifeline volunteers who have lost their regular paid jobs as result of coronavirus restrictions will be prioritised to receive paid shifts.
"Some of them have volunteered for many years and have been impacted by COVID-19," Ms Robinson said.
"We can then offer some assistance there so it helps, I guess, to reduce the impacts on their finances."
