Suicide Prevention and Protocols
Prevention
Suicide is a serious public health problem that can have lasting harmful effects on individuals, families, and communities. There are many factors that contribute to suicide. The goal of suicide prevention is to reduce factors that increase risk and increase factors that promote resilience (CDC, 2022).
Hotlines
Postvention
What a school should do to protect their students/staff in the wake of a suicide death
It’s a very quick, practical tool…schools don’t have time for 300 pg. toolkits when they’ve lost someone near and dear and are in a state of crisis
Ready-to-use releases with best practice language for the media, parents, and students
Much of this info is applicable to other causes of death
Screeners and Safety Plans
ASCA Information Gathering Tool: Suicide Concern in English and Spanish
ASCA A Quick Guide to Support Students with Suicidal Ideation
The Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (CSSRS), English and Spanish versions + extended risk assessment
Most simply use the brief screeners
Evidence-based and widely used, which is protective not just of students, but schools as well
Suicide Informational Questionnaire from the American School Counselor Association
No-harm contracts simply do not work and can get schools into legal hot water
Safety plans are evidence-based and cut suicide risk in half when done properly
Resist the urge to have the student sign their plan…this is not a contract, and this can damage rapport and reduce the effectiveness of the tool!
The student writes, you guide
Student reviews daily and when in crisis
Consider the Suicide Safety Plan app by Inquiry Health LLC (available in the Android & Apple stores) as additional protection
Slide deck w/ open-ended questions to guide safety planning
Open-ended questions make safety planning less robotic and get the student’s wheels turning
Suicide is an issue of problem-solving; safety planning helps kickstart the student’s capacity to think through problems when in a crisis!
These should be used as part of a student’s reentry plan
Excellent documentation; evidence-based for student safety
Good guides for your ongoing check-ins with the student
School Policy
One of the better models--districts can simply modify this for their use
Excellent step-by-step procedure
Contains all the forms you could possibly want/need (screeners, safety plan for student/family, parent acknowledgment/refusal forms, authorization to release info, and more)