By the end of this module, you can: receive an incomplete call, message, or report; find the person; identify what cannot wait; call the right help; prepare access; and keep the response updated as facts change.
Most crisis reports are incomplete. The caller may not know exactly where the person is, what happened, or whether the situation is medical, behavioral, or something else.
You do not need every answer before acting. You need enough information to:
find the person;
understand what is happening now;
recognize danger that cannot wait;
send the right help;
prepare responders to reach the person;
keep the plan current when new information appears.
Ask where the person was last seen, where the caller is now, where the person may be going, and how responders can reconnect with the caller.
Result: You have a usable location, callback number, and access starting point.
Do not send an unprepared student, peer, or staff member to chase, confront, transport, or monitor someone indefinitely.
2
Ask
Find out what is happening now
Ask short questions about responsiveness, breathing, injury, movement, speech, behavior, threats, weapons, fire, people present, and what has changed.
Result: You have the key facts needed to decide whether help must be sent now.
Keep direct observations separate from opinions. Say “the caller saw,” “the caller believes,” and “we do not know.”
3
Call
Send urgent help when delay could cause harm
Use the emergency route when the current condition or the cost of waiting could involve serious medical danger, suicide, violence, fire, or another major threat.
Result: The right emergency or professional response has been activated.
You may need to act with incomplete information. Report what is known, what is uncertain, and why delay may be dangerous.
4
Prepare
Prepare responders to reach the person
Identify doors, keys, meet points, building access, room location, hazards, language or communication needs, and who can safely meet arriving responders.
Result: Responders know where to go, how to enter, and who is coordinating their arrival.
Calling for help does not solve a known access problem. Make the barrier visible and contact the person authorized to address it.
5
Update
Change the response when the facts change
Update responders when the person moves, the condition worsens, contact is made or lost, a new hazard appears, access changes, or the original plan cannot be completed.
Result: The response follows the current situation instead of an outdated report.
State who currently owns the next action and what change will require another call, escalation, or new plan.
A caller says their roommate left a study room about ten minutes ago with slow speech and unsteady walking. The caller thinks the roommate “took something,” but did not see an ingestion. The caller is walking through the building looking for them and does not know which floor they are on.
Why this fits the evidence
The first report gives you a starting point, not a diagnosis. Begin with location, callback, current condition, and anything that cannot wait.
New information
The caller reports serious physical impairment
The caller adds that they last saw the roommate stumble into a wall, sit on the floor, answer slowly, and struggle to stand without holding the wall. No one currently sees the roommate.
Why this fits the evidence
The response is based on the person’s current condition and the danger of waiting—not on whether the exact cause has been proven.
Access problem
The person enters a locked restroom
EMS is on the way. A desk worker saw the roommate enter a locked restroom and can direct responders to the floor, but cannot authorize entry. The original caller is safe at the desk.
Why this fits the evidence
A call for help is only one part of preparation. Responders still need a usable location, access plan, meet point, and current contact.
the person is locatable; urgent danger has an active response; responders have usable access information; the current owner and pending actions are clear; and everyone knows what change requires an update.
Return to Receive and Prepare when
the person moves, the condition changes, contact is gained or lost, urgency changes, access fails, responders are delayed, ownership becomes unclear, or new important information appears.
A commuter sends a goodbye message from an unknown parking area
A friend calls a campus front desk and reports receiving: “You will not have to worry about me after tonight.” The friend believes the commuter is in a car somewhere on campus. They know the vehicle description and phone number but do not know the parking lot. The commuter is not answering.
Why this fits the evidence
The receiver does not need a diagnosis or complete history. The first response needs the exact message, source, callback, location clues, vehicle information, emergency activation, and a clear plan for updates.
Secure begins with the information you prepared. Give the next responder:
the exact or last-known location;
what was directly seen or heard;
what remains unknown;
the immediate danger and help already activated;
known access barriers and the meet point;
who currently owns each pending task;
what change requires an updated response.
Do not assume responsibility transferred because a call was placed or a responder is on the way. Confirm what the next person accepted and what still remains yours.
Final Check
What are the five steps?
Find → Ask → Call → Prepare → Update.
What must be ready before Secure begins?
A usable location, current condition, urgent response, access plan, clear owner, and update trigger.
