Spectra Helpline
Nominator Comments:
Jin has helped countless individuals in the Chinese community requiring emotional support. She has helped to minimize the stigma of mental health issues. Every day she brings hope to her clients.
Jin has been the Chinese Outreach Coordinator for the past 6 years and has prioritized the importance of mental health within the Chinese community. Jin has helped countless number of individuals requiring emotional support, subsequently minimizing the stigma of mental health issues in the Chinese community.
Jin is responsible for over 102 Cantonese and Mandarin speaking clients who are in need of either daily check-in safety calls, medication reminders, or social calls. It requires extreme patience and compassion to deal with the issues being raised daily on the lines, such as: abuse, neglect, depression, newcomer issues, suicide and loneliness. Jin is consistently meeting organizational targets and remains professional when dealing with callers/clients, staff and community members.
On numerous occasions, Jin has volunteered her time to the Cantonese and Mandarin phone lines. Her dedication to these language lines, has ensured that there is always someone available when a Cantonese or Mandarin speaking individual calls Spectra Helpline.
Jin has dedicated 6 years to providing support to the Chinese community, through her work at Spectra and being a member of PCIN: Peel Chinese Interagency Network. In 2015 there were 1742 incoming and over 9000 outbound calls made to registered clients from Jin’s program. This story below demonstrates her impact:
“I am a senior client and I have experienced emotional and financial abuse by my family. Every time you talked to me, you listened patiently to my stories and needs with great empathy. You referred me to a social worker and kept in touch with this social worker for the progress of my senior’s housing application. You helped me find an interpreter so I could communicate with housing workers effectively. It has been a lengthy process, you never stopped supporting me. You gave me hope and positively helped me be emotionally stronger when I felt suicidal. You even offered me a ride to your organization’s social event that I enjoyed so much with other seniors. With your support and care, I no longer feel isolated and lonely. You also took initiative to talk to my daughter even though you don’t need to do this. Now our relationship has improved a lot after we tried our options. You have always tried your best to help me deal with difficult situations and finally thanks to your hard work and dedication, I got my dream housing earlier than I expected! Honestly you are my daughter in my heart! You are like my family!” TeleCheck Client
