September is Suicide Awareness Prevention Month

September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. Rates of suicide in the United States has risen and it continues to be a leading cause of death. In 2016 alone, nearly 45,000 lives were lost to suicide (CDC Report, 2018).

Please click HERE for information and resources to support suicide awareness.

HURRICANE FLORENCE DISASTER RESPONSE AND RECOVERY RESOURCES

Catastrophic natural disasters, such as Hurricane Florence, cause extreme disruption and can be distressful for individuals, families and communities. Those receiving assistance as well as those involved in disaster management efforts can be affected. Individual and community strength can be enhanced by interventions that address critical behavioral health issues throughout both the response and recovery phases. Ideal interventions promote the evidence-based principles of Psychological First Aid (PFA), including: safety, calming, self- and community-efficacy, social connectedness, and a sense of hope/optimism.

Click HERE for resources that provide disaster mental health information to assist families, responders, community leaders, and healthcare providers in response and recovery efforts.

5 Steps to Save a Life

Suicide is an important public health issue for our communities. Knowing how to help others gives us confidence to reach out and connect with people who seem to be hurting or having difficulties. This "5 Steps to Save a Life" resource is adapted from the National Institute of Mental Health and lists simple steps one can take that may ultimately save someone's life.

Below are pdf versions of the content on a flyer as well as folding card (suitable for printing) FREE to download and share throughout your organization and community.

Army STARRS: Volume 2, Issue 5, Updated August 31, 2018

This document is an ongoing continuous summary of Army STARRS and STARRS-LS publications. Army STARRS (2009-2015) was the largest and most comprehensive research project of mental health among U.S. Army Soldiers ever conducted. The project was designed to examine a broad range of risk and resilience (protective) factors across a complex set of outcomes including suicidal behaviors and associated mental health issues. Army STARRS scientists created a series of large and extensive databases with the potential to achieve groundbreaking results. These databases allow scientists to investigate a diverse combination of factors from demographic, psychological, biological, neurological, behavioral, and social domains with the goal of generating actionable findings for the Army. The project was designed using an adaptive approach which means it evolved as new information became available over the course of the project. The research team shared preliminary findings, as they became available, with senior Army leadership so the Army could apply them to its ongoing health promotion, risk reduction, and suicide prevention efforts. The work is continuing under the STARRS Longitudinal Study (STARRS-LS) which runs from 2015 to 2020.

CAPITAL GAZETTE MASS SHOOTING RESPONSE AND RECOVERY RESOURCES

In response to the tragic shootings at the Capital Gazette newspaper office in Maryland, the Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress has created resource page with information and educational fact sheets. These resources provide disaster mental health information to assist families, responders, community leaders, and healthcare providers in response and recovery efforts. The resource page can found HERE