Is a mobile counselling unit the best option?

Dear Editor,
If counselling is already available in each region, as recently pointed out by Chief Education Officer Marcel Hutson, shouldn’t the Ministry of Education ensure that all parents are aware of where and how this counselling can be accessed?
Also, should there not be, at the minimum, trained lay counsellors at schools, to ensure each school has a minimum level of expertise to identify and refer all cases requiring counselling?
And should there not also be a law mandating teachers to report issues such as suspected abuse, suicide ideation et al?
As well, with the move to set up a mobile counselling unit, which will be driven into different areas (and) communities based upon the needs, how would this work for regions that can only be accessed by air?
And what about the amount of time it would take to travel to distant areas such as, for example, Corriverton or the Pomeroon? And how effective would such a unit be, given that counselling is not a one-off measure, but has to be ongoing to ensure desired results? In fact has a cost benefit analysis been done with respect to this unit? With a pool of trained counsellors now available, would it not be less costly in terms of money, time and results to initially have all education districts staffed with trained counsellors who can also access other available needed resources? And with UG now offering a psychology program, secondary schools can also have their own counsellors within a few years.

Sincerely,
The Caribbean Voice