RUOK?
What is RUOK? Day all about and is it still relevant?
Jeremy Fiske
School Health Promotions Nurse
After two years of lockdowns and the various knowns and unknowns that we’ve experienced first-hand with a global epidemic, you might think that perhaps a single day doesn’t really cut it anymore. But that would be missing the point. The intention of RUOK? Day is not to encourage a singular moment of synchronised sympathy, but rather to remind us that being good, caring, sympathetic and empathetic people can be quite easy - even if it doesn’t always come automatically.
While it’s true that times of generalised hardship can help to re-focus our sense of community, it can also blind us to the plight of the individual. Emotional and energetic reserves and resilience differ from person to person and occasion to occasion, so RUOK? Day serves a purpose to remind us to be aware of the signs that someone we may know might be needing help but may not even know it... until asked. The intention of RUOK? Day is not to push us out of our comfort zone or to expect that we can be a font of wisdom. The intention is to remind us that, person to person, we can all do a little something to make the world a better place.
RUOK? Day encourages a 4 step process:
- Ask
- Listen
- Encourage Action and
- Check In.
To my mind the ‘Encourage Action’ point is very particular in that it does not expect us to have all the answers. Remember too, that while not everyone will be able to help (and that is ok) reminding someone that help is out there cannot hurt.
RUOK? Day was officially marked on Thursday 8th September,
but any day can be RUOK? Day.
For more info and some terrific resources on how to ask RUOK?, check out https://www.ruok.org.au/how-to-ask