Lethal Impulse

March 3, 2006 by Jeremy Olson, Erin Grace

Beatrice: Community education campaign includes billboard with suicide hot-line number, business cards with suicide hot lines, depression screenings at community events and schools. Counselors visit nearby rural schools.

Lincoln: Partnerships between the schools and mental health providers help families get free evaluations and a foot in the door for treatment.

Millard Public Schools: Some middle and high school students are taught the acronym ACT, to care for potentially suicidal friends: Acknowledge your friend's feelings and Care enough about your friend to Tell a trusted adult.

Omaha Public Schools: Counselors are in classrooms a dozen times a year to teach personal, academic and social skills. Depression is a focus in 10th grade.

Papillion-La Vista South High: A play production class wrote a 40-minute drama addressing the stigma of mental health and suicide. The students hope to take the play to other schools.

Westside Community Schools: Freshmen conduct a self-profile, identifying their own risk factors. High school students meet in small groups with school counselors. Middle school students study risky behaviors.

McCook Junior High: Students spend a week studying suicide. Parents are alerted. Counselors do follow-up sessions for troubled youths. Wallet-size Yellow Ribbon cards list tips and hot-line numbers. Students can simply give a card to an adult if they need help.

Girls and Boys Town in Omaha: Offers social skills training for parents and people who work with youths. Call (800) 448-3000.

 

Screening teens for suicide risk.

TeenScreen: Used at 350 sites in 44 states. Developed by Columbia University. Girls and Boys Town in Omaha can help schools get started. Can be administered by trained guidance counselors. Call (866) 833-6727.

School Community Intervention Program: Based in Lincoln, SCIP trains school staff on warning signs of substance abuse or mental illness; 126 Nebraska schools participate. Call (402) 483-4581, extension 244.

Nebraska Student Assistance Program Initiative: Early identification and referral system. State pays to train school staff to flag struggling students, review their cases and find them help. Call (402) 463-5611.

Additional resources
For more information, call the Suicide Prevention Resource Center at (877) 438-7772. Or call Nebraska's suicide prevention committee, (402) 481-5165. David Miers is chairman.