Developing Comprehensive Developing Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Suicide Prevention

Lloyd Potter, PhD, MPHChildren’s Safety Network &

Suicide Prevention Resource Center

Education Development Center, Inc.

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TopicsTopics

• Title V and Suicide Prevention

• Implementing Evidence-Based Prevention

• Collaboration and Integration of Suicide Prevention

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Title V Block Grant National Title V Block Grant National Performance MeasuresPerformance Measures

• Reducing suicide rates among 15-19 year olds

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State Title V Performance Measures - State Title V Performance Measures - MaineMaine

• The percentage of high school students (grades 9-12) who feel like they matter to people in their community.

• The percentage of elementary schools that have developed and implemented a comprehensive approach to the prevention of bullying in collaboration with the Maine Injury Prevention Program.

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State Title V Performance MeasuresState Title V Performance Measures

• Minnesota -The degree to which Title V programs enhance statewide capacity for a public health approach to mental health promotion and suicide prevention for children and adolescents.

• Rhode Island - Percentage of students who felt so sad or hopeless almost every day for two weeks or more in a row that they stopped doing some usual activities during the past 12 months.

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Society

Community

Family/Peers

Spheres of Influence:Spheres of Influence: Ecological perspective of developmentEcological perspective of development

Individual

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The Mental Health Intervention Spectrum for mental The Mental Health Intervention Spectrum for mental

disordersdisorders

Source: Institute of Medicine. (1994). Reducing risks for mental disorders: Frontiers for preventive intervention research.

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Evidence of effective suicide prevention Evidence of effective suicide prevention interventionsinterventions

Universal• Means control (promising)• Laws and policies (promising)• Public health messages

(insufficient)• School-based interventions –

education (insufficient)

• School-based interventions – skills (promising)

• Gatekeeper training (insufficient)• Screening (insufficient)

Selective• Life skills (promising)• Small group skills (promising)• Managing geriatric depression

(promising)

Indicated• Behavioral/cognitive–behavioral

strategies (effective)• Brief psychological intervention

(promising)• Contact through letter or

telephone (promising)

Adapted from: Knox, K. (2006). Interventions to prevent suicidal behavior. In: Doll et al., Handbook of Injury Prevention.

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SPRC SPRC Best Practices Registry Best Practices Registry

www.SPRC.orgwww.SPRC.org

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Delivering and adapting evidence-based Delivering and adapting evidence-based programs in communitiesprograms in communities

where the rubber meets the road

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The Whole is The Whole is Greater than the Greater than the Sum of the PartsSum of the Parts

• Necessary, not sufficient• Highly targeted focus of specific prevention/promotion

efforts often inadequate for achieving mental health promotion goals

• A more comprehensive and collaborative approach is needed

Is evidence-based programming adequate?Is evidence-based programming adequate?

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Community Problem Solving CapacityCommunity Problem Solving Capacity

Collective Competence

SharedResponsibility

Low High

Low

High

AnomicCommunities

LL

DetachedCommunities

LH

IntentionalCommunitie

sHL

EmpoweredCommunitie

sHH

Source: Bowen, G.L., Martin, J.A., & Mancini, J.A. (1999) Communities in Blue for the 21st Century: Fairfax, VA: Caliber Associates, (p. 8-9).

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Coalition for Planning, Coalition for Planning, Collaboration, and IntegrationCollaboration, and Integration

• Schools• Faith community• Community programs• Acute/Primary care• Mental health• Advocacy groups• Police and courts• Foster care• Child/Family protective services

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ConclusionConclusion

• Defining suicide prevention relate performance measures can help advance efforts

• There is a growing body of information about evidence-based and best practices that states and communities can use

• Planning, collaboration, and integration at the state and community level should drive suicide prevention and mental health promotion

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ResourcesResources

www.SPRC.org

www.ChildrensSafetyNetwork.org

www.SPANUSA.org

www.AFSP.org

www.suicidology.org