How Wollongong's suicide crisis centre is keeping people in distress out of ER

Kate McIlwain
Updated November 21 2022 - 11:17am, first published November 19 2022 - 9:00am
"I wish so deeply Safe Haven existed when I was younger and really, really struggling. It's not like talking to a stranger - it's talking to someone who has existed in that realm with you - and that feels very rare," Kirsty (left), who uses the service, says. Picture by Sylvia Liber.
"I wish so deeply Safe Haven existed when I was younger and really, really struggling. It's not like talking to a stranger - it's talking to someone who has existed in that realm with you - and that feels very rare," Kirsty (left), who uses the service, says. Picture by Sylvia Liber.

It's almost 2pm on a Thursday, and Emma and Renee are waiting to start their shift at Wollongong suicide crisis centre Safe Haven.

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Kate McIlwain

Kate McIlwain

Journalist

For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.

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