Overview
A well-rounded approach to suicide prevention should include practical strategies and be incorporated into ongoing training programs.
Key takeaways
- Conduct regular mental health screenings for students.
- Develop skills in recognizing risk factors at the individual, relationship, community, and societal levels.
- Recognize and support student populations who may need additional care.
- Plan for key transitional periods.
1. Conduct mental health screenings
Incorporate mental health screenings into existing school-wide initiatives, such as Positive Behavioral Intervention Support (PBIS) or Virginia Tiered Systems of Supports (VTSS).
Use questionnaires or screening tools with all students to identify those who may benefit from further assessment and support.
Repeated assessments can help measure changes in attitudes or behaviors over time, to test the effectiveness of a prevention strategy, and to detect potential suicidal behavior.
2. Recognize risk factors
Risk factors are characteristics or conditions that increase the chance that a person may try to attempt suicide.
Suicide risk tends to be highest when multiple risk factors are present simultaneously.
Risk for a suicide attempt often increases when risk factors are present or escalating, protective factors have decreased, and when someone has access to lethal means.
Suicide has no single determining cause, and considering multiple levels of focus is useful for understanding suicide risk.
Individual-level risk factors
- History of depression and other mental illnesses
- Feelings of hopelessness
- Substance abuse
- Certain health conditions
- Difficulty adjusting during transitional periods
- Previous suicide attempt
- Bullying
- Victim or perpetrator of violence
- Genetic and biological determinants
Relationship-level risk factors
- History of high conflict or violent relationships
- Sense of isolation and lack of social support
- Family or loved one’s history of suicide
- Financial or work stress
Community-level risk factors
- Inadequate connectedness to community
- Barriers to health care (e.g., lack of access to providers and medications)
Societal-level risk factors
- Availability of lethal means of suicide (e.g., firearms, illicit drugs)
- Unsafe media portrayals of suicide
- Stigma associated with mental illness and seeking help
3. Identify and monitor vulnerable student populations
School divisions should recognize student populations who may be at elevated risk for suicidal behavior and may benefit from additional support.
4. Know the warning signs for suicide and self-harm
Warning signs are indicators that someone may be in danger of harming themselves and requires an immediate referral for a suicide risk assessment and appropriate intervention.
5. Plan for key transitional periods
Consider how your school can expand suicide prevention efforts during transition periods from one school to another (due to either grade promotion or relocation).
During these transitions, protective factors, such as access to supportive adults or friends, may be unintentionally removed.
Schools should discuss how they can communicate with receiving schools during these transitions to ensure that students who have been at risk of suicide in the past can be monitored and supported.