Essential Recommendations from a Crash Course on Suicide Prevention Presented by Dr. David Jobes on World Suicide Prevention Day

I am beyond grateful to you all for holding space with me during September, Suicide Awareness and Prevention Month. And thank you for your support of Dr. Jobes's webinar on World Suicide Prevention Day.

After hearing from Dr. Jobes that 12 million people around the world suffer from suicidal ideation and that "there will never be enough therapists to help", I felt determined to gather inexpensive and not too time-consuming training opportunities. Some listed below are available to anyone and some are for mental health care workers. Suicide is treatable and preventable if those who suffer get connected. We must pool and share information, and teach and support each other in order to gain any ground.

*Disclaimer: Neither BHBA nor I, have any financial relationship to any entity listed in this email and receive no compensation or financial gain from purchases made subsequent to reading this newsletter.

Dr. Jobes critiqued DBT as being labor-intensive, time-consuming, and expensive to learn and master for the therapist. This is an important and fair criticism. The problem of suicide is growing exponentially and interventions are needed quickly. If you are interested in learning DBT but believe there are too many obstacles, please email me. Let's start a conversation!

In light of this, I hope some of you were inspired by Dr. Jobes to seek CAMS training. The full training protocol is not very time-consuming and costs under $500. Click here for more information.

There is another exciting training opportunity for everyone that is not very time-consuming and only costs $30! Click here to read about QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer). The developers believe that because suicide happens in families, "at least one person per family unit should be trained in QPR". Imagine feeling more equipped at home! They also provide training for school employees, corporations, and essential workers. Pass this training along far and wide.

The National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality Disorder (NEABPD) offers six 20-minute training videos for free on their website. Click here to access them. The comprehensive video series can be rented for $20. The NEABPD is dedicated to providing resources for families of loved ones suffering from borderline personality disorder and has useful information for anyone navigating life with a suicidal person, no matter what their diagnosis.

The Center for Practice Innovations offers free training on their website on safety planning and suicide assessment using the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (CSSRS). Please click here for the link. They train all essential workers who work within the NYS office of mental health.

Next week, the NYS office of mental health is hosting a free 3-day virtual symposium for their AIM for Zero Suicide Care initiative. Click here to read about their streaming event and register. They rely on the AIM model developed by researchers at Columbia University. Click here for more detailed information on this state-wide initiative.

The Zero Suicide Care initiative is global. Their website is comprehensive and provides free training on the CSSRS and other resources. Click here for more information.

The UPenn Center for Prevention of Suicide offers training for CBT for suicide from the developers. Click here for more information.

Dr. Jobes emphasized that assessment is the first line of defense, as well as ongoing assessment, rather than relying on clinical judgment. Our team is set to replace a laborious assessment tool with one he recommends, the Ask Suicide Questions ASQ. This is a valuable assessment tool any care professional can use and is free.

Next week I will send a newsletter with resources for family members for suicide prevention, hotline numbers, education, etc. This post will reside on my website (along with all of my content) for future and quick reference.

Thank you all again for your commitment and collaboration to combat this terrible and global epidemic, and please connect with me if you have resources to share.