When a young person chooses to take his or her own life, family, friends, schools and communities are left wondering what could have been done to prevent such a desperate and all too final act. Although suicide is a relatively rare event in the youth population, statistics show that for every youth death by suicide, it is estimated that 100 to 200 attempts are made.  2009 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals that one in seven teenagers in the United States seriously considered suicide over a 12-month period. That's roughly 4 students in every
high school classroom.

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Workshop on Youth Suicide Prevention:
A Community Approach

This interactive one or two day workshop provides an opportunity for community and school representatives to gain knowledge and skill in planning a community approach to youth suicide prevention. Individuals with accurate information can be better prepared to identify youth at risk for suicide, demonstrate caring behavior, and refer or link youth to appropriate resources.

Details

During the workshop, a number of resources and tools are shared that aim to enhance participants’ understanding and maximize their community’s assets to better deal with suicidal behaviors in children and youth. The workshop suggests frameworks to use for a community suicide prevention effort, all based on the public health approach and System of Care values and principles. Participants explore the issues involved with planning, implementing and evaluating programs. In addition, they are introduced to specific issues such as cultural and linguistic competence, meaningful partnerships with families and youth, and community and state partnerships.

Workshop Goals

Presenters

Katherine J. Lazear and Stephen Roggenbaum, authors of the Youth Suicide Prevention School-Based Guide, developed the 2-day intensive workshop. Both Lazear and Roggenbaum have consulted with and provided technical assistance to numerous states and local communities on suicide prevention, as well as having presented at and facilitated many conferences, meetings and trainings.