April 2005

Suicide Prevention Conference

EDC’s Suicide Prevention Resource Center brings together suicide prevention planners and advocates

The Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC), run by EDC's Health and Human Development Programs, sponsored the conference "Preventing Suicide in Public Health Regions IX and X" from February 28 to March 2, 2005 in Portland, Oregon. This conference, the third of five such regional events, brought together suicide prevention planners and advocates from eight western states to focus on advancing the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention through work on state suicide prevention plans.

Suicide prevention coordinators from each state organized a multi-disciplinary, multi-agency team, including professionals in public health, mental health, juvenile justice, and education, as well as suicide survivors (people who have experienced the suicide of someone close to them), to attend the conference.

One of the main events was a series of facilitated meetings by state so that members of the state teams could get to know each other better, discuss issues relevant to their state, and develop their state suicide prevention plans. According to Lloyd Potter, Director of the SPRC, "we document the plans the teams take home and use those plans to provide follow-up technical assistance. The plans also provide us with some baseline indicators that allow us to track the progress states are making with implementation."

Outcomes of some of the state meetings:

• Alaska formed a state-wide chapter of the education and advocacy organization Suicide Prevention Action Network (SPAN USA)
• Hawaii and Idaho formed state-wide suicide prevention coalitions
• Oregon formed a coalition of colleges and universities to work on suicide prevention

A variety of informational and skill-building workshops was also offered, including finding and using data effectively and social marketing (how to raise awareness about suicide prevention). Workshops also focused on special populations and settings, including rural communities, older adults, college students, Asians, and Native Americans. A session addressed the continuing debate over prescribing antidepressants to children and adolescents and whether these medications may increase their risk for suicide. A special event at the conference was the meeting of Native American and Alaskan Native groups from across all the states to discuss common issues.

"The conference provided an opportunity for skill-building and networking among participants in the different states," according to Ramya Sundararaman, Prevention Support Coordinator for the SPRC. " It drew upon local and national expertise to help move suicide prevention planning, implementation, and evaluation efforts forward."

Many participants said they found the conference to be a particularly valuable opportunity to work collaboratively on their state goals and action plans. "I am sure the conference has given us a leg up on planning," said one participant. "Also, it provided everyone an opportunity to see professionals from public health, mental health, and education work together."

Related Resources:

Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC)

Online Registry of Evidence-Based Practices in Suicide Prevention

Suicide Prevention by State (To find out what is happening in your state)

This story originally appeared on the Web site of EDC's Health and Human Development Programs

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