This is a monthly newsletter from CDPHE regarding the Office of Suicide Prevention.

Edition 58 | February 2023

OFFICE OF SUICIDE PREVENTION

Welcome to the February 2023 Office of Suicide Prevention newsletter, celebrating Black History Month!

Rockstar Partner Spotlight!

This month's OSP Rockstar Partner is Dr. Anna Mueller.


Anna S. Mueller, PhD. is the Luther Dana Waterman Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at Indiana University. Previously, she was at the University of Chicago (from 2015-2019) and the University of Memphis (from 2011-2015). She is also the past-chair of the Section on Children & Youth of the American Sociological Association and the Principal Investigator of the Social Worlds & Youth Well-being Study. In 2020, she was recognized as one of Science News’s Top 10 Early Career Scientists to Watch and with the Edwin S. Shneidman Early Career Award for her contributions to understanding youth suicide and suicide clusters.

The primary strand of Mueller’s research agenda examines how social relationships and social contexts shape adolescent health and wellbeing over the transition to adulthood, with a focus on adolescent suicide and suicide clusters. Her current project investigates (1) how suicidal behaviors and emotional distress spread between youth, (2) what factors facilitate the formation of suicide clusters in schools and communities, and (3) how social environments in communities, schools, families, and among peers, contribute to youth’s vulnerability to suicide and emotional distress. She is also interested in how social organizations (like schools and hospitals) shape social relationships and social interactions in ways that have implications for the production of inequality and the health and wellbeing of individual organization members. In addition to her current project on youth suicide, Mueller has a second strand of research that examines the production of gender inequality in medicine during residency training, with a focus on emergency medicine. Read more about why Dr. Mueller is a rockstar here

Do you have a Rockstar Partner in your community that you would like to see featured in our next newsletter? Nominate them here by completing our Rockstar Partner Nomination Form.

Office of Suicide Prevention Updates

The first regular session of the 74th General Assembly (Colorado's legislature) convened on January 9, 2023. OSP continues to gear up for another busy legislative session. Please email us at CDPHE_SuicidePrevention@state.co.us if you have any questions or are working on something policy-related that you want to share with the OSP.

Colorado-National Collaborative

Alliance for Suicide Prevention of Larmier County in partnership with Yarrow Collective and The BIPOC Alliance present a new peer support group for BIPOC members called Unity in Community. They are offering a sacred space for quiet, reflection, connection, and permission to be, when we find ourselves no longer wanting to continue on, having or had thoughts of suicide or feeling disconnected. Find more information in bit.ly/BIPOCUnityInCommunity or at https://www.yarrowcollective.org/


2023 El Paso County Suicide Prevention Summit: Last month, the Suicide Prevention Collaborative of El Paso County hosted a Suicide Prevention Summit in partnership with UCCS at Berger Hall. The Summit was immensely successful with nearly 200 in attendance and consisted of more than ten different presentations around topics on suicide prevention including Veterans and Military Families, LGBTQIA2+ populations, Men and Mental Health, Lethal Means Safety, Connectedness and more with fantastic speakers from throughout our community. The goal was for those in attendance to be able to leave the event feeling more confident in talking openly about suicide and mental health, and with increased knowledge in resources available within the community and concrete actions they could start taking today to help prevent suicide.

State Partners

The Colorado Suicide Prevention Day at the Capitol brings together passionate volunteers to advocate for state policy changes that will improve mental health and prevent suicide. This year’s Hill Day is March 1, 2023, 7:30am-1:00pm. The event will include a brief training session on the basics of an effective advocacy visit and current policy issues impacting suicide prevention. Following, advocates will have the opportunity to attend meetings with state legislators that will be scheduled ahead of time. Register here by February 26th, 2023.

Seeking Stories of Positive Adult-Youth Relationships

CDPHE is creating messaging for our Forward Together marketing campaign that aims to reach young people and parents/caregivers across Colorado to encourage strong, meaningful connections, and raise awareness of why these connections are important. If you are interested and willing to share your personal story, please send an email to mikhail@se2changeforgood.com. Agreeing to be interviewed does not commit you to participating. You can learn more about what they are doing, what role you can play, and then you can decide if you still want to participate. Make sure to include the following when you email them: your full name, your town/city, phone number, and email address.


The Office of Gun Violence Prevention is proud to announce that it is expanding its pilot grant program to increase award amounts to a $50,000 maximum. The Office of Gun Violence Prevention will now accept applications through Feb. 23. Organizations that have already applied for the smaller grants can amend their applications for larger amounts, if they choose. The Office of Gun Violence Prevention plans to award approximately $450,000 in total funding. For priority consideration, applications should be completed by 6 p.m. MST on Feb. 23, 2023. See answers to FAQs.


Help inform the Child Fatality Prevention System (CFPS) 2023 Annual Report

Are you someone who works to improve the health and wellbeing of infants, children, young people, and their families? Please consider joining CDPHE’s Child Fatality Prevention System (CFPS) in March for two meetings to: learn about trends in child deaths from 2017-2021 and lend your expertise to conversations about ways to prevent future deaths and support children and their families and communities. See the flyer for dates and more details about each meeting, including a link to register to attend. 

Zero Suicide

The next Zero Suicide Learning Collaborative will be held on Thursday, February 23rd from 10:00 - 11:00 am. This Learning Collaborative will cover Change Management in Zero Suicide Implementation. Please email conlin.bass@state.co.us to be added to this calendar invite and listserv. Recordings and slides from previous Learning Collaboratives can be found here.

Suicide Prevention Commission

The first Commission Meeting of the new year with live Spanish interpretation was held on January 27, 2023. If you missed our first Quarterly Commission Meeting of 2023 the information including meeting materials and recording can be found here. The Commission is proud to offer all Commission Quarterly Meetings with live Spanish interpretation. 


The Suicide Prevention Commission is excited to announce that we are currently accepting applications for multiple Commissioner seats. The Commission is working towards minimizing the impacts of suicide for all Coloradans. The current open seats are: Law Enforcement, Philanthropic, Colorado Business Community, Interfaith, Tribal Communities Member and Medical Provider or First Responder, please click on the various links to learn more about what the ideal candidate is for each open seat. If you are interested in applying for any of the current Commissioner Seat openings please click here. For more information on what the Commission is and what being a Commissioner entails please click  here. 


The information including meeting materials and recording for our first Commission meeting of 2023 can be found here. Please reach out the Commission Coordinator, Alise Nichols with any questions. 


The Suicide Prevention Commission supports multiple workgroups: an Older Adults Workgroup; a Youth-Specific Initiatives Workgroup; the Governor’s Challenge Workgroup to Support Service Members, Veterans, and their Families; and a Postvention Workgroup. Click here to sign up for any workgroup. All workgroup materials can be found here.

The Commission's Postvention Workgroup is currently looking to identify existing suicide postvention written resources in the Spanish language in order to share out these resources with the broader Colorado community. This workgroup recently released the Postvention Resource Gathering Form in both English and Spanish in order to solicit Spanish-translated postvention resources. Please share these with partners, organizations, etc. We would love to have a robust list of postvention materials available in Spanish to share with our communities! 


Please reach out the Commission Coordinator, Alise Nichols with any questions.

Training

The next virtual CAMS training will be Thursday, April 20th from 8:30am-4:30pm. Please register here. If you are having trouble accessing the registration form, please email Kaleigh at kaleigh.kessel@state.co.us. If you are interested in attending an in-person CAMS training later in 2023, please complete this form


Save the date! 2023 CAMS training sessions will also be offered on Wednesday, May 17th, Tuesday, June 6th, and Thursday, August 17th! If you are interested in attending a different virtual CAMS training session, please join our interest list.

The Office of Suicide Prevention has updated the instructions for accessing the LivingWorks Start gatekeeper training. Please see this instruction sheet for more details. Please visit the Office of Suicide Prevention’s Training webpage for more information on CAMS, LivingWorks Start, and much more!

Funding Opportunities

Community Programs for Outreach and Intervention with Youth and Young Adults at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis: SAMHSA has released a funding opportunity for community programs that provide outreach and intervention to youth at high risk for psychosis. Applications are due March 14.


Grant applications are now open for youth-serving nonprofits across Colorado. Please review the two Requests for Proposals documents from our 5 Denver-area YouthBoards to see if you fit any of the current funding priorities and geographic restrictions, and then apply online here. Applications are due April 9, 2023. Please note that organizations may apply for funding from multiple boards if they fit the funding priorities. Please indicate on the application which board/s you are applying for.


With funding made possible through the AAP Friends of Children Fund, the Academy will launch a Gun Safety, Injury, and Violence Prevention (GSIVP) Grant Program. Up to 10 community grants, each worth up to $15,000, are available to qualified applicants. Grantees will be funded for a 9-month project period, April 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023. This program will provide small grants to plan, implement new, and/or expand existing projects to advance gun safety, injury, and violence prevention initiatives. The application submission deadline is 2:00pm CT, March 10, 2023. For more information and to download the application click HERE. Direct questions to ahanes@aap.org.


For providers in Douglas County: Are you interested in applying for the Douglas County Suicide Prevention ARPA grant for suicide prevention training? LivingWorks can help! We are looking for local organizations to partner with for this and other suicide prevention grant applications. There is no cost for this support, but capacity may be limited – so get in quick. Simply reach out to Tamara Bezu, LivingWorks Support Specialist, at tamara.bezu@livingworks.net or call 587-482-2032 (MT) to discuss your needs.

RESOURCES - Hot off the Press!
*Disclaimer: The following resources and events do not necessarily reflect the Office of Suicide Prevention’s views or opinions.

Please note: There is an "Upcoming Events" section at the end of the newsletter. If your browser clips this email, please be sure to click "View entire message" to access all of the content!

Black & African American Suicide Prevention

African American Behavioral Health Center of Excellence (AABH CoE). This Center takes an innovative, highly collaborative public health approach toward cultural and practical transformation of behavioral health systems, services, approaches, practices, and workforce development. 


Mental Health Resources for Black People, curated by BLKHLTH and Dr. Ayanna Abrams, lists organizations, social media accounts, directories, books, apps, and other resources to promote mental health in Black and African American communities.


To help start conversations about mental health, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., and NIMHD have launched Brother, You're on My Mind: Changing the National Dialogue Regarding Mental Health Among African American Men.


Ring the Alarm: The Crisis of Black Youth Suicide in America. A report that outlines mental health trends among Black youth and recommends policies to address it.

Equity

Two Spirit LGBTQ Health: While some resources on this site are specific to the Pacific Northwest region, resources are also available that may be applicable to local Two Spirit/LGBTQ communities.

General

Click here to read about the importance and impact of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (formerly known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline). The most recent data summary specific to Colorado (2020) is available here.

10 Tips for Using CAMS with Adherence. This blog addresses 10 of the most common challenges many clinicians face when beginning to use CAMS with clients.

Youth and Young Adults

In the news: A recent article from KUNC highlighted various programs that support Colorado youth with their mental health. The Office of Suicide Prevention is pleased to be working with the Second Wind Fund and Rocky Mountain Crisis Partners through a new SAMHSA GLS Youth Suicide Prevention grant to expand resources for youth!  


CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data Summary & Trends Report: 2011-2021 is now available. This report provides surveillance data from 2021, as well as 10-year trends from 2011 through 2021, on behaviors and experiences among high school students in the United States related to health and well-being.

Older Adults

The National Council on Aging has launched a new version of their online learning management system, NCOA Connect! This system offers free access to 250 on-demand events, 200 resources, and communities of best practice for older adults, caregivers, advocates and other professionals. 


Effective falls prevention interventions: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have published "What Works Well for Community-Dwelling Older Adults", a collection of effective fall interventions designed to help public health practitioners, senior service providers, clinicians, and others who want to address older adult falls in their community.


Advancing Equity in Aging Toolkit

Lethal Means Safety & Overdose Prevention

Gun violence is a public health crisis that continues to devastate individuals, families, and communities. The Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health made a renewed commitment to work to end it by establishing a Task Force and creating a framework to guide academic public health institutions to inform their actions related to gun violence prevention.


Differences in firearm storage practices among United States military servicemembers who have and have not disclosed suicidal thoughts or attended behavioral health sessions. Servicemembers with undisclosed suicide ideation are more likely to store firearms at home without locking devices.


The Connection Between Mental Health and Opioid Use Disorder. This free, on-demand webinar will enable participants to summarize the prevalence of common co-morbid mental illness, explain the relationships between concurrent mental health and opioid use disorder (OUD) and recognize risk factors associated with both mental health disorders and OUD.

Sleep Health

Sleep in Suicidal Behaviors: a presentation from Elizabeth Bell originally shared during January’s Colorado Suicide Prevention Commission meeting. The slides, including links to additional sleep-related suicide prevention resources, are available here

Industry-Specific

Culinary Hospitality Outreach Wellness (CHOW) has curated a list of resources for you to explore. CHOW’s resources include both general emergency support resources and groups interested in empowering the hospitality industry by providing education and support for mental health.


Welcome to Boom Goes The Stigma! BGTS is a production of the Construction Suicide Prevention Partnership (CSPP). BGTS is a tool that normalizes and elevates the conversation around mental health. On every episode, guests from within and outside the construction industry discuss critical issues, share stories, and, most importantly, blow up the stigma of talking about mental wellness as a sign of weakness.

UPCOMING EVENTS!

Register for Partners for Childrens’ Mental Health’s free Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) trainings! QPR is for anyone 18+ interested in learning about suicide warning signs, prevention strategies, and how to support youth having thoughts of suicide. 2/23/23 12PM – 1:30PM


Webinar: Effective Behavioral Health Crisis Response (February 23, 12:00pm-1:30pm PT). This webinar will explore strategies for reducing, mitigating, and responding to behavioral health emergencies involving individuals experiencing homelessness.


LGBTQ+ Mental Health: Challenges, Advocacy, and Clinical Considerations for Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming Persons: March 1, 2023, 5:00 - 6:15pm MT. Panelists will discuss mental health inequities affecting transgender and nonbinary people and provide strategies for incorporating evidence-based gender-affirming mental health care into clinical psychiatric practice.


CAMS-4Teens™ Interactive Training! This 4-hour Zoom training is available to anyone (prior CAMS training strongly recommended) and provides guidance on adapting the CAMS Framework® for youth ages 12 and older. Register Now, seats are limited. March 8th, 2023 at 11:00 pm MT. ($100/person – 4 CEs available)


Bowling Against Bullies - Snow Bowl Steamboat will take place March 10th, 5pm - 10pm. Learn more or register here


3rd Annual Summit: Suicide Safer Care In Clinical Practice: Incorporating Current Best Practices: The Wellness Institute (TWI), in collaboration with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), The Zero Suicide Institute, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and The Jed Foundation, will be hosting a two-day virtual training on March 21st and 22nd, 2023 whereby participants will learn from leading figures in the field of suicide prevention research. Click here to view the full detailed brochure.


Active Minds is hosting a Mental Health Advocacy Academy for high school Black, Indigenous, and/or people of color (BIPOC) and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ+) youth this summer. The Academy is a paid, leadership opportunity intended to ensure that high school youth have tools and resources to develop mental health advocacy campaigns that will transform change in school, community, and state culture and increase mental health resources. The Academy will be held virtually from July 24 - July 28, 2023. More information and the application can be found here. The application deadline is March 21, 2023. Seats are limited to 100 youth.

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To improve the health, well-being and equity of all Coloradans through health promotion, prevention and access to health care.