Menu of Suicide Prevention Actions

What Coalitions and Task Forces can do...

Engage survivors of suicide and attempts in all local planning efforts.

Establish peer groups composed of suicide survivors to assist those at risk.

Assist with building regional networks throughout Florida where local providers, survivors, policymakers etc., can work together to move suicide prevention forward in their community.

Develop local action plans to implement specific goals and objectives of the state strategy.

Apply for funding to implement suicide prevention programs in statewide programs and schools, such as the high school Turning Hour Project.

Provide free gun locks as is currently done in Pennsylvania by the State Police, local police and Sheriff's.

Engage the media on advancing local suicide prevention efforts. Utilize SPAN USA's Engaging the Media Guide and SPAN USA Media Action Center to reach local media. Share your coalition’s or task force’s activities and successes. Distribute public service announcements such as "Suicide prevention is important because each new suicide puts others at risk; promote life as a solution. Stopping one suicide saves more than one life." Respond to pressing issues with letters to the editor. Construct a well-developed powerful message repeated over and over in many arenas and media sources.

Educate to stop discrimination and hate speech against minorities.

Create “Where to Turn” books listing agencies to help all youth and their families and place books in schools.

Find ways to utilize Florida's vast senior labor pool in suicide prevention activities.

Ask a well-known local person to be a spokesperson for suicide prevention in the community.

Adapt the Florida Substance Abuse Response Guide for use by local communities working on suicide prevention - its logic model really helps guide good decision making.

Use the Strategic Prevention Framework's 5-step process to continue to strengthen state planning so that resources are targeted where there is the greatest need and in a manner that tracks progress and measures outcomes.

Encourage programs that target special populations such as youth, sexual minorities, seniors, and at risk populations.

Convene focus groups of suicide survivors and/or those who attempted suicide within a specific demographic group in a community to identify what was helpful and what would have been helpful.

Develop a comprehensive list of all types, locations and contact information for all suicide prevention gatekeeper programs to be made available on a website.

Identify a network of local trainers who can train various populations about suicide prevention in a variety of settings.

Integrate suicide prevention activities with other prevention initiatives that are currently ongoing in your community and around the state so you can utilize their resources and ensure that suicide is part of the broader prevention network.

Follow an implementation process (such as the Implementation Guide on this website) that is based on proven implementation techniques.

Engage in regular (e.g., annual) planning efforts that are driven by suicide-related community data.

Systematically collect suicide data in each Florida community, and compile and analyze these data at the community level on an annual basis.

Develop a suicide prevention pocket card that would include the warning signs, risk factors, three questions to screen for suicide ideation, a what to do list, and a list of suicide prevention numbers.

Organize a community-awareness media campaign which includes suicide survivors in its development and targets a variety of sub-populations.