Eduhero: Suicide Awareness and Prevention Training

How to access this program?

Visit https://eduhero.net/promo.php to review available training options.

What is the program?  

This course was developed through Education Service Center Region 6 (ESC 6) and is intended to provide Texas school district employees with important information regarding youth suicide and how school faculty and staff can use evidence-based strategies to try and prevent these tragedies.  

Who is the program for?  

The training is intended for educators, professional school counselors, administrators, and all other school staff (i.e., paraprofessionals, substitutes, and school support staff).  

How is this program implemented?  

The course includes formative and summative assessments. The user must make a 70 to receive their certificate for the course. District Administrators can assign courses to all staff, substitutes, and board members as needed. 

What is the practice that is supported?  

Community based suicide prevention is forming a broad coalition within a community to carry out prevention activities that reflect local needs and resources. Community settings for suicide prevention are important and includes schools, afterschool programs, places of worship, workplaces, and health care providers as examples of where community-based suicide prevention should take place.  

What outcomes does the program produce?  

• Increase in awareness of suicide warning signs  
• Increase in awareness of resources for help related to suicide risk  
• Improve skills, knowledge, and attitudes for suicide prevention and intervention   
• Reduce stigma around mental health and suicide prevention  
• Improve likelihood of youth seeking help if they or their peers are at risk of suicide 

What is the evidence?  

Schmidt, R. C., Iachini, A. L., George, M., Koller, J., & Weist, M. (2015). Integrating a Suicide Prevention Program into a School Mental Health System: A Case Example from a Rural School District. Children & Schools, 37(1), 18–26. https://doi.org/10.1093/cs/cdu026  

In this case study, a rural school district’s integration of a community wide suicide prevention program with the district’s current school mental health system was evaluated. Throughout the integration of the suicide prevention program, data from 5,949 sixth through twelfth graders was evaluated for four academic years. Among the data being evaluated is the student’s knowledge and help seeking behavior to support their peers with suicidal thoughts. Results showed that students’ knowledge about suicide ideation and help seeking increased because of the suicide prevention program. The number of students stating that they would seek help from an adult if they were concerned a friend would hurt themselves grew 13 percentage points, from 83% before the program to 96% after the program.   

Cusimano, M. D., & Sameem, M. (2011). The effectiveness of middle and high school-based suicide prevention programmes for adolescents: A systematic review. Injury Prevention, 17(1), 43–49. https://doi.org/10.1136/ip.2009.025502  

This metanalysis evaluates the efficacy of suicide prevention programs to improve knowledge, attitudes, and help-seeking behaviors for middle and high school students. There were 8 studies included in the analysis which evaluated 6 different school-based suicide prevention programs. After review of the studies, the metanalysis shows that school-based suicide prevention programs can improve knowledge, attitudes, and help seeking behavior. The analysis also showed that there was no evidence of suicide prevention programs having negative impacts on the community like increasing suicidal ideation or feelings of hopelessness.  

What are the costs associated with implementing this program?  

Please contact the program for the most recent costs and commitments, as these may change.  

The Suicide Awareness and Prevention course is in the Heroic Package. The Heroic Package is available for schools and organizations for $7.00 per FTE + $500 annually. The Heroic Package includes this course and dozens more. We also include a substitute teacher portal at no additional cost. There are also individual subscriptions available for non-district employees. 

What resources are helpful for understanding this practice/tool?  

• Education Service Center Region 6 website: https://www.esc6.net/ 
• ESC 6 Eduhero website: https://eduhero.net/promo.php 

Any training or interventions from this repository should be used in accordance with established staff development standards and adopted professional development policies of the Local Education Agency (LEA) per §21.451 and §21.4515 of the Texas Education Code (TEC) and the LEA’s suicide prevention policies and procedures pursuant to §38.351. While this training satisfies the statutory training requirements of §21.451(d)(3)(A), §21.451 (d-1)(1), §21.451 (d-2) and §38.351, it is best practice for staff to receive ongoing training which may include job embedded professional development, coaching opportunities and annual training. 

Rating: Research-Informed  

Secondary Components: Grief and Trauma- Informed practices, Early Mental Health Prevention and Intervention