Suicide prevention awareness and intervention project - health education center (HEC) proposes to provide mental health awareness and intervention training for three groups of gatekeeper groups that…

Suicide prevention awareness and intervention project - health education center (HEC) proposes to provide mental health awareness and intervention training for three groups of gatekeeper groups that deal directly with the population of focus: persons experiencing serious mental illness (SMI) or serious emotional disturbance (SED). In connecticut, more than three times as many people died by suicide in 2017 than in alcohol related motor vehicle accidents. Suicide was the 2ND leading cause of death among those ages 15-34, 4TH leading cause of death for ages 35-54, and 8TH leading cause of death for ages 55-64. Overall, suicide is the 12TH leading cause of death in connecticut. Native americans and veterans are at higher risk of suicide. HEC and its partner, southwestern ahec, will train community gatekeepers (community health workers, medical interpreters, tribal community members, including veterans, health professions students and a statewide network of community volunteers and providers working on trauma prevention and healing in connecticut's most economically distressed areas) in suicide prevention and intervention methods. Training for suicide awareness and intervention will be delivered by using two evidenced-based practices, applied suicide intervention training (asist) curriculum and the QPR (question, persuade, refer) gatekeeper training for suicide prevention (QPR). Training will teach individuals to recognize the signs and symptoms of mental illness and how to appropriately and safely respond. Our training populations are uniquely positioned as gatekeepers, both within their peer communities and the general public, making them more likely to encounter persons at risk of suicide. The geographic catchment area is connecticut. Over the course of the five-year project, HEC will train 352 gatekeepers in asist and 1,000 gatekeepers in QPR. Gatekeepers are individuals who are trusted and in a position to outreach to and educate members of their communities. An estimated 300 interventions will be performed over the project period and 150 referrals will be made for mental health services for each of the suicide intervention methods.