In January 2022, OCU’s Behavioral Intervention Team (BIT) changed its name to the Campus Assessment Response and Education Team – now being known as CARE.
“This team was established to identify, assess, and monitor OCU students displaying moderate to extreme levels of concerning behavior,” stated a university announcement regarding the name change. The team’s goal is to intervene in these situations to prevent problems and protect students.
The CARE webpage features a secure form for students to submit a “Person of Concern Referral.” Students may submit a referral when they fear someone may be in need of assistance.
In addition to the form, the CARE website includes an extensive list of warning signs and concerning behaviors which may reflect a students’ need for referring. Some of these warning signs include “Direct statements indicating distress, family problems, or loss; excessive fatigue; frequent or chronic illness; angry or hostile outbursts; deterioration in physical appearance or personal hygiene,” and others. The full list may be found on the CARE website.
The CARE webpage refers to these warning signs as “red flags,” and states that the CARE team is a centralized entity that collects referrals for students on campus to assist students in need. These referrals notify the CARE team about students who may need counseling or assistance based on warning signs, so that the student can be given aid before problems or dangers arise.
After receiving a referral the CARE team creates a plan to help the student-facing crisis. The CARE team may recommend psychological help and check back with students. The CARE team states it “[Balances] FERPA, HIPAA and counselor privilege with University need-to-know and emergency communication needs.”
The CARE team, in addition to aiding and protecting individual students, aims to protect the campus community as a whole. By preventing hostility or endangering action from a student in distress, the CARE team works to create a safer campus.
While the list of warning signs from the CARE website is extensive, it may be more difficult to recognize these warning signs when classes are held virtually and students have less face-to-face interaction.
Some warning signs may require greater attention to notice. A warning sign that can still be noticed virtually is a direct statement of distress that indicates the student is struggling.
The CARE website recommends acting on “a hunch or gut-feeling that something is wrong” by referring students in this case.
Any OCU student fearing a peer may be exhibiting “distress, disruption..” or “behavioral dysregulation such as homicidal, suicidal, assaultive or self-injurious threats” is encouraged to utilize the secure referral form found on the OCU CARE website.
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