Suicide can be a difficult topic to discuss. Especially if one has known someone who has committed suicide. Suicide does not discriminate and happens anywhere that life exists. According to Rosenberg (1999),”Suicide is the 8th leading cause of death overall in the United States. For the elderly, it is the 13th, and for the young (15-24) it is it the 3rd leading cause of death” (pp. 83-87). The increasing rate of suicide has called implementations of suicide prevention plans. Prevention plans are not only in place for schools systems, there are many different suicide prevention plans pertaining to different groups of people. In this paper, I’m going to discuss a suicide prevention plan in a school system, a family prevention plan, and then …show more content…
The staff members that implement the program do not have educational, mental health training, or licensure requirements. However, program kits are required. The program kits are about $400. The kits are full of useful information and resources. Some of the things that are included are program implementation guides, student response cards, Will to Live packets, student newsletters, access to online resources, and the Brief Screen for Adolescent Depression (BSAD) forms. The program also has an interactive training module online for school staff and supporters.
Research on this program has shown a favorable outcome of reduced suicide. “At a 3-month posttest, it was found that intervention high school students were less likely than control students to report having had suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts” (“SAMHSA,” 2014). Results were taken from questionnaires. This program, however, is ineffective for increasing the receipt of mental health and/or substance abuse treatment and ineffective for increasing social competence related to help seeking behaviors (“SAMHSA,” 2014). Overall the program showed improved in suicidal thoughts and behaviors and knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about mental health.
The next model is the Family Intervention for Suicide Prevention (FISP). The FISP is a cognitive behavioral family intervention for youth ages 10-18 who have thought about suicide or tried to attempt it. These children have been brought to an
The next educational effort would be the students at all schools with the focus on “health risks and nutrition and knowing what suicide looks like” in your friends or family. During education, the health maintenance and grief resource center would be initiated with location information given to all clinics, dentists, mental health counselors, schools, local hospitals, and churches. This approach to community assessment allows the PHN the understanding of historical trauma, sociocultural, and economic contexts and meaning to create partnerships with individuals, families, groups and communities promoting improved overall health and mental health (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2016). The focus of this program would center around Lake County Montana with adolescent and younger children at the forefront. Outreach, follow-up, and counseling is an impediment to improvement and stabilization for the mental health individual, which could be a risk factor for suicide and other health-related concerns. To assist with this goal, a grant will be required to cover financial needs. For example, The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s Research Grants awards monies from 30,000 to 1.5 million for suicide prevention, in 2015 they awarded 17 grantees for studies and programs to prevent suicide (afsp.org). These dollars will assist
The National Suicide Prevention Strategy (NSPS) promotes prevention and early intervention on suicide. It originated in 1995, and then expanded in 1999 when more evidence for the risk of suicidal behaviours emerged. The main objectives of NSPS are to target suicide prevention activities, create standards and raise the quality of suicide prevention, build and educate on self-help, improve the community, and improve the understanding of suicide prevention. The components of the strategy are listed in four inter-related components:
We have a strong desire to assist TCS with suicide prevention for middle school student. Also, we have goals of expanding to elementary schools. The Kristen Amerson Youth Foundation will utilize the SEL for Prevention’s Step-Up Program to equip children with tools & strategies to prepare them for life’s challenges and keep them
With the prevention of mental and physical health difficulties and the advancement of well-being and health, there is emphasis on reducing the breach between mental health needs that are not met among youngsters and teenagers and operational evidence-based services to meet them (Rones and Hoagwood 2000; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 1999; U.S. Public Health Service 2000 as cited in Flaspohler, Meehan, Maras, & Keller, 2012). Despite evidence that school viciousness and other main problems among youth may have declined or leveled off, a significant need for effective prevention programming is still necessary. Current data suggests that of “11.3 % of young people in this country, about 7.4 million youth altogether, have at least one diagnosable emotional, behavioral, or developmental condition; 40 % of these youth are diagnosed with two or more of these conditions” (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 2010).
From experts on this issue, to the civilians in the public, it is expressed deeply that suicide should not be hidden from any person, including children. It is said that, ¨Each day in our nation there are an average of over 5,400 attempts by young people grades 7-12,¨ (The Parent Resource Program). The thought of a lovely girl named AnnMarie Blaha may come into mind, who took her life in 2013, and was a fifth grader at Meadow Ridge. Nothing can compare to the tragedy of why AnnMarie decided to commit suicide, and the sadness that overwhelmed the school districts was unbearable. From learning about AnnMarie’s story, it can show that like most parents of children who commit suicide, AnnMarie’s parents who had no idea of their daughter’s unknown situation. I confronted my parents, asking them certain questions dealing with this difficult topic. The first question I asked was, “Do you know where to go if you believe your child is thinking of suicide?” Unfortunately, neither one of my parents were able to answer question, because like parents of suicidal children, the thought has never crossed their minds. Since AnnMarie’s death, the importance of educating children and teens of suicide has grown tremendously, and a Prevention Law called, ¨AnnMaries Law,¨ was signed by Governor Bruce Rauner to require ¨the Illinois State Board Education and local school boards to create policies ensuring that students receive age-appropriate lessons youth suicide and prevention¨ (Chicago Tribune). Multiple websites describe the traumatizing death of AnnMarie, but one in particular called, ¨AnnMarie’s Foundation, A Life to Remember,¨ provides resources, hotlines, facts, and notifies the community of warning signals that may be given off by any person. The raise in education is highly needed in all communities. In
To many people, these facts are certainly frightening because no one wants people to commit suicide, especially not children who have their entire lives ahead of them. There are many programs that have tried remedying this issue multiple times, such as the Youth Suicide Prevention Program (YSPP), National Center for the Prevention of Youth Suicide (NCPYS), and Youth Aware of Mental Health (YAM). However, as suicide rates continue to rise, it is obvious that there needs to be more done in order to treat mental illnesses and suicidal behavior in children and teenagers.
This hybrid model will be operated by school faculty. Services will be provided by practicing faculty members including school nurses, student nurses, special education teachers, and school counselors. This model will build upon programs and services that exist in most schools, and fill in gaps by providing screening and services with a collaboration between schools and community agencies. Iachini et al’ (2015), reports that interdisciplinary mental health care for youths in schools has proven beneficial in improving quality of life
Suicide is a severe community health matter which can have lifelong negative consequences on individuals, families, and the society. Reduce suicidal risk factors and increase protective measures are the main objective of suicide prevention. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defined suicide as the “death caused by self-directed injurious behavior with intent to die as a result of the behavior; suicide attempt is “A non-fatal, self-directed, potentially injurious behavior with an intent to die as a result of the behavior; might not result in injury’; and suicidal ideation is “thinking about, considering, or planning suicide” (2015).
The structure of our program is to work with school sites in order to train a core group of students on how to identify the risk factors and warning signs of suicide. The goal is for the students to ultimately be a link to a trusted adult or resource on campus for a student who may be contemplating suicide. Once students are trained we work with them to create schoolwide campaigns which focus on raising awareness to help resources that are always available when needed.
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. (2016). A model school policy on suicide prevention: Model language, commentary, and resources. Retrieved from:
Child and adolescent mental health problems are at a point of crisis for our nation. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has identified that one out of every ten children or adolescents has a serious mental health problem that interferes with daily functioning, and another 10% have mild to moderate problems and fewer than one in five of these children receive the mental health services they need. SAMHSA asserts that half of adult mental illness begins before the age of 14, and three-fourths before age 24. They go on to state that more than 40% of youth ages 13 to 17 have experienced a behavioral health problem by the time they reach seventh grade. Concluding that suicide is the third leading cause of death among youth ages 15 to 24 after accidents and homicide. The costs of failure to prove adequate services to children and adolescents with serious mental illnesses are well known: high rates of incarceration in juvenile facilities; family disruption; social isolation; school truancy and drop out; and
and psychiatrists are now coming up with prevention plans for their patients. One task force is
This study involved schools that both participated and did not participate in the program evaluating incidences of adolescent depression in both groups. Results showed decreased levels of depression in students who reported increased levels of problem-solving skills. The experimental group overall showed less depression suggesting that the program may have provided a buffer against new development of depression. Disappointingly, at a 12 month follow-up there was no significant difference amongst the groups. The study used similar measures for evaluation including questionnaires, interviews, and evaluations.
In America, a person ¨commits suicide every 16.2 minutes (“11 Facts About Suicide”)”. Since a numerous amount of people die from suicide everyday, it has been a big problem in the U.S. Being suicidal is when someone feels hopeless, pathetic and worthless. Suicidal thoughts affect the mental capacity of people and it can interfere with their daily lives. The controversy on how to save the life of a suicidal patient remains inconclusive; some people believe it should start with prevention and/or awareness programs, whereas others think it should start with the affordability of treatment.
Day to day, teens suffer from peer pressure, problem from home, and stress from academics. Despise their status in the environment, majority of high school students refrain from acknowledging the presence of their reality. The problem in most situations in that students feel shut in, trapped in a never ending misery. How do they cope? What are their ways of dealing? Most students live in denial. Others have friends to confide in. For the devastating part, most students are not as open to these ideas and it leaves them with this alternative: suicide. Suicide is the third leading cause in teens the ages 14 to 19 within rural underserved areas. Suicidal ideation (SI), suicidal thoughts, were surveyed in over 12 high schools and it was found that in the past year, thoughts of (SI) were not shared with peers or even adults in the pursuit of receiving help or support (Pisani, 2012). Because a student spends most of their day at school, it is ideal for schools to provide realistic opportunities and school-based programs to assist with the suicide among the youth. The Surviving the Teens Suicide Prevention and Depression Awareness Program designed four 50 minute session or each high school student. This presented information in regards to factual information about depression, suicidal warning signs, suicidal risk factors and myths associated with suicide (King, 2010). The program provide coping strategies for everyday life, referral sources if feeling suicidal, and how to recognize