Suchergebnisse

Abstract. Background: A common suicide prevention strategy is training gatekeepers to identify at-risk individuals and refer them to services. Aims: The study aimed to examine whether differences in training outcomes were observed for brief versus in-depth gatekeeper trainings for trainees from varied professional settings while controlling for differences in trainee characteristics and community context. Method: Trainees' identification and referral behavior 3 months after gatekeeper training was compared with a sample of respondents matched on individual- and community-level variables using propensity score-based techniques. The value was estimated, in terms of additional identification and associated costs, of adopting in-depth training. Results: A higher proportion of trainees who participated in in-depth trainings from K-12 and community settings identified at-risk youth, and a higher proportion of in-depth trainees from mental health settings referred youth to services compared with participants of brief trainings from the same setting and with similar characteristics. The effect of training type on outcomes varied by professional role and community context. Limitations: Self-report measures were used to assess outcomes. Similar measures are used in other studies; their validity has not been conclusively established. Conclusion: Findings suggest certain individuals may benefit from in-depth training more than others, which favors targeting this intervention to particular gatekeepers.

Background: In order to better understand the posttraining suicide prevention behavior of gatekeeper trainees, the present article examines the referral and service receipt patterns among gatekeeper-identified youths. Methods: Data for this study were drawn from 26 Garrett Lee Smith grantees funded between October 2005 and October 2009 who submitted data about the number, characteristics, and service access of identified youths. Results: The demographic characteristics of identified youths are not related to referral type or receipt. Furthermore, referral setting does not seem to be predictive of the type of referral. Demographic as well as other (nonrisk) characteristics of the youths are not key variables in determining identification or service receipt. Limitations: These data are not necessarily representative of all youths identified by gatekeepers represented in the dataset. The prevalence of risk among all members of the communities from which these data are drawn is unknown. Furthermore, these data likely disproportionately represent gatekeepers associated with systems that effectively track gatekeepers and youths. Conclusions: Gatekeepers appear to be identifying youth across settings, and those youths are being referred for services without regard for race and gender or the settings in which they are identified. Furthermore, youths that may be at highest risk may be more likely to receive those services.

The Arctic Council, a collaborative forum among governments and Arctic communities, has highlighted the problem of suicide and potential solutions. The mental health initiative during the United States chairmanship, Reducing the Incidence of Suicide in Indigenous Groups: Strengths United Through Networks (RISING SUN), used a Delphi methodology complemented by face-to-face stakeholder discussions to identify outcomes to evaluate suicide prevention interventions. RISING SUN underscored that multilevel suicide prevention initiatives require mobilizing resources and enacting policies that promote the capacity for wellness, for example, by reducing adverse childhood experiences, increasing social equity, and mitigating the effects of colonization and poverty.