State Health Department Releases New Resource To Raise Awareness of Suicide

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BALTIMORE (WJZ) — The Maryland Department of Health connected Friday released a caller assets to rise consciousness of suicide, the 2021 Suicide Awareness Prevention Month Toolkit: Stories of Hope. The toolkit aims to rise awareness, trim the stigma astir suicide, dispersed hope, physique resiliency and promote well-informed action, according to a section statement.

The toolkit features accusation and calls to action astir sharing stories of resiliency, which tin normalize conversations astir termination portion creating harmless spaces for radical to inquire for help, according to the statement.

Suicide was the tenth starring origin of decease wide successful the U.S. successful 2019, claiming astir 48,000 lives. Since the opening of the COVID-19 pandemic, suicides among each ages person increased, according to preliminary nationalist data. In May 2020, visits to exigency rooms for suspected termination attempts began to summation among young radical betwixt the ages of 12 and 17, particularly girls.

The full fig of suicides accrued by 18 percent from 2019 to 2020, according to the authorities Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

The toolkit includes illustration societal media messaging, a pledge to dispersed culturally informed and evidence-based termination prevention strategies, accusation connected the authorities Behavioral Health Administration’s (BHA) Stories of Hope run and information sheets on:

Supporting People with Lived Experience
Warning Signs of Suicide
Risk Factors of Suicide
Health Risk Factors of Suicide
Protective Factors of Suicide
Groups astatine Elevated Risk of Suicide
R.A.C.E. for Suicide Prevention
Lethal Means Safety

During the archetypal 2 quarters of 2021, suicides by firearms accrued from 43 percent to 51 percent during the aforesaid clip successful 2020, according to the Medical Examiner’s office. According to the statement, the overwhelming request for guns successful Maryland whitethorn pb to accrued deaths by suicide, successful summation to accrued incidences of weapon violence.

From the opening of the pandemic, BHA has been reaching susceptible populations done telehealth, moving with behavioral wellness providers to place gaps successful service, and spreading consciousness connected termination prevention and betterment efforts. BHA leaders developed a Student and Young Adult Resource Guide for Coping during COVID-19 with accusation and resources for young Marylanders.

BHA is besides raising termination prevention consciousness by:

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Sharing abbreviated videos connected societal media astir stories of anticipation and resiliency
Hosting the 33rd Annual Suicide Prevention Conference for behavioral wellness professionals connected Oct. 6
Offering aggregate workforce grooming to behavioral wellness professionals; processing resources to enactment superior attraction providers who administer termination hazard screenings, and grooming clinicians successful Assessing for Suicide successful Kids
Leading termination prevention efforts for subject work members, veterans and their families done the Governor’s Challenge to Prevent Suicide Among Service Members, Veterans, and their Families
Partnering with Psych Associates of Maryland to found Operation Courage, a programme providing situation effect to frontline workers
Partnering with the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems to supply escaped intelligence wellness counseling to nursing location staff
Partnering with Maryland State Department of Education done Project AWARE (Advancing Wellness and Resiliency successful Education) to summation supplier consciousness connected adverse puerility experiences and resilience, arsenic good arsenic facilitating Mental Health First Aid trainings
Promoting consciousness and usage of BHA’s mindresilience.org website

People experiencing thoughts of termination should interaction Maryland’s helpline by calling 211, and pressing one, texting 898-211, oregon visiting pressone.211md.org.