President's Perspective
You Needn't Suffer Alone - Wisconsin Lawyers Assistance Program Is
On Call for You
By Susan R. Steingass
I don't have to tell you that the practice of law is full of stress,
anxiety, and worry. This is true whether you're a transactional lawyer
or a litigator, a prosecutor or a probate lawyer, whether you practice
alone or in a large firm. Our profession is full of requirements for
exact and timely performance. We carry the burden of our clients'
problems as well as our own. Many lawyers find satisfaction in the
profession, and even grow and thrive, professionally and personally, in
the face of these pressures. But many experience mental and physical
problems or develop other career-related concerns as a result.
Studies have found that lawyers fall prey at an alarming rate to
burnout, job dissatisfaction, depression, chemical dependency, and a
host of psychological, behavioral, and physical symptoms related to
stress from the practice of law. This is devastating to the lawyers who
suffer these effects and the clients whose matters affected lawyers may
fail to attend to. Some affected lawyers may so neglect client matters
as to ultimately result in grievances filed against them with the Board
of Attorneys Professional Responsibility (BAPR).
The State Bar's Lawyers Assistance Program
(WisLAP) was formed as a member service and a public service. It
offers confidential assistance to lawyers experiencing these problems,
and provides public information through educational programs.
WisLAP is staffed by State Bar employees Shell Goar, the overall
program coordinator and the on call stress helpline and career-change
contact, and Lea Landmann, administrator of the program's chemical
dependency component and the on call chemical dependency helpline
contact. Attorney Gregory Van Rybroeck, a licensed psychologist and
clinical director at the Mendota Mental Health Institute, trains WisLAP
volunteers and is the program consultant. The program operates under the
aegis of the WisLAP Committee, which is jointly chaired by attorneys
Thomas R. Casper, C. Michael Hausman, and Winifred A. Nathan.
WisLAP maintains a 24-hour helpline to deal with requests for help by
and on behalf of attorneys. The helpline, indeed any communication, is
absolutely confidential, and the helpline does not even use caller ID
devices.
WisLAP also welcomes attorney volunteers and provides training for
them. The list of attorneys willing to help is growing, but we need
more.
The role of trained volunteers is carefully delineated as a listening
and helping role as opposed to the treatment role that is performed by
trained mental health professionals. Through the WisLAP stress and
mental health and the chemical dependency program administrators,
referrals also are made to appropriate medical and community resources,
and sometimes to self-help groups.
Potential trained volunteers who fear they will become privy to
information that triggers the mandatory reporting requirement for BAPR,
remember that Wisconsin Supreme Court Rule 20:8.3(c) expressly exempts
WisLAP volunteers from reporting any professional misconduct learned
about in the course of confidential counseling.
WisLAP also provides educational programs on a variety of topics
ranging from burnout, anxiety, coping with the demands of practice, job
dissatisfaction, job changes, and more. Staff and volunteers also offer
a three-hour CLE Ethics program on avoiding grievances and malpractice
dealing with stress, burnout, depression, and chemical dependency. This
program has already been presented to 12 local bar associations,
including a session I attended in Sturgeon Bay for the Door, Kewaunee,
and Brown county bars. Consider asking your local bar to sponsor such a
worthwhile program which, incidentally, satisifies the entire ethics
requirement for reporting members.
Recently, the Young Lawyers Division joined with WisLAP to offer
"Been There, Done That," a program that pairs attorneys who call about
concerns with career-related issues with volunteers who have faced
similar issues themselves.
This is very important work so, be you a potential trained volunteer
or a lawyer who could use some help, please call WisLAP. The helpline is
always open, 24-hours-a-day, seven days a week, and is absolutely
confidential. The helpline numbers are listed below and are on your
State Bar member card!
We all have busy and sometimes stressful lives in a stressful
profession. So please call, whether you want help or to help.
Help is a confidential phone call away ... 24-hours every day
- Stress Helpline, (800) 543-2625 - stress, depression, or
professional crisis
- Chemical Dependency Helpline, (800) 254-9154 - alcohol or
drug-related concerns
- For career-related concerns, (800) 444-9404, ext. 6172
For more information, or to become a trained volunteer, please call
Shell Goar at (800) 444-9404, ext.
6172.
Wisconsin
Lawyer
