Schools part of bigger plan to lower state's high suicide rate
Wisconsin teens are committing suicide at one of the highest rates in the nation - about one a week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Warning Signs of Someone Considering Suicide
Any one of these symptoms does not necessarily mean the person is suicidal, but several of these symptoms may signal a need for help:
Verbal suicide threats such as, “You’d be better off without me.” or “Maybe I won’t be around.” Expressions of hopelessness and helplessness. Previous suicide attempts. Daring or risk-taking behavior. Personality changes. Depression. Giving away prized possessions. Lack of interest in future plans. Crisis Line
National Mental Health Association: Call (800) SUICIDE or (800) 784-2433 Online suicide prevention resources for schools |
Educators, counselors and several state agencies have started a three-year project to decrease suicide rates and gather information about behavior and other factors that can help prevent suicides worldwide.
"Suicide is a global epidemic," said Lisa Roehl, of the Mental Health Association in Milwaukee County, the state-wide agency leading the project with the Department of Health and Family Services, the Department of Public Instruction and the Medical College of Wisconsin. "I think a lot of people think it only happens occasionally in certain areas."
Wisconsin's $1 million federal grant program will help teens with high-risk factors, such as living in isolated rural areas, having guns in their home and abusing alcohol or drugs. Ten counties, including Sheboygan, Green, Lafayette, Marathon and Portage, will participate. Targeted project sites also include a Native American community not yet selected and the Wisconsin School for the Deaf in Walworth County.
"The School for the Deaf is included because we hope to learn more about that population," Roehl said. "That's new; this is the first time this population has specifically been a part of a targeted suicide prevention project."
State officials have called suicide a major public health problem in Wisconsin for years -- especially teen suicide. It's the second leading cause of death for Wisconsin young people and the tenth leading cause of death for all ages, according to the state Department of Health and Family Services. Only Alaska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Utah had higher teen suicide rates than Wisconsin, according to the CDC's most recent data in 2003 when 53 Wisconsin teens committed suicide.
Organizers will be developing toolkits with resources for schools and will also offer teacher trainings.
"Schools will be a part of the program; educators can help by being aware of the signs," Roehl said. "But when you talk about suicide prevention, it's not a simple thing that you can pinpoint to one contributing factor. It is multi-faceted, so schools as well as community and parents need to get involved."
After the three-year project, the Medical College of Wisconsin will analyze results. The project targets a decrease of at least 10 percent.
"We were conservative about setting the number at 10 percent," Roehl said. "Suicide prevention is a difficult thing to measure because there is no evidence - nothing has happened at that stage. But it's important for people to know that suicide is preventable -- especially when you see that more people die from suicide than from homicide."
In Wisconsin, the suicide rate is three times greater than the state homicide rate.
Posted June 29, 2006