UR Medicine Recovery Center of Excellence has partnered with SafeSide Prevention to provide suicide-prevention training to rural service providers.
Opioid use disorder (OUD) and overdose deaths have been on the rise along with suicides across the country. The strong interplay1 between OUD and suicide means suicide prevention is a key component of OUD treatment. However, rural communities sometimes do not have the resources, personnel, or infrastructure to develop comprehensive programs.
This training program aims to reduce suicide risk among individuals with OUD in rural communities. Using SafeSide Prevention's evidence-based framework, it provides comprehensive, video-based education and training to help health care workers, human services professionals, and their partners in rural communities address this risk.
Introduction to SafeSide Training
[Music]
Hi I'm Tony Pisani a psychologist and family therapist with a focus on suicide prevention. I founded Safeside Prevention to address a key challenge many organizations face in suicide prevention: how to engage and unite a diverse workforce serving diverse populations in diverse locations to think, act, and communicate with a common set of principles and practices. We'll give you a quick introduction to how we address this challenge and the role you'll play as a host. I'm Kristina Mossgraber I'm an advocate for youth and adults who struggle with mental health and suicide concerns.
As a suicide attempt survivor myself I use my lived experience to convey a vision of hope and recovery at Safeside and beyond. Hi, I'm Mel Clark. I've been a carer for my brother who has struggled with mental health and suicide concerns for over 15 years. Through my lens of lived experience I advocate for trauma informed and family inclusive practices for youth and adults within Safeside programs and across systems.
The SafeSide educational model combines online video training with group learning and ongoing access to instructors. The three components of the program are:
- Video-guided instruction and demonstration: Video modules designed for small-group or individual training that teach and demonstrate the systematic framework for suicide prevention.
- Community of practice: Access and direct connection to a global professional network to ask questions, share resources, and receive advice and feedback. Monthly live office hours enable participants to interact with SafeSide faculty in real time.
- Tools and refreshers: All resources are updated regularly with evolving practices and the latest research and regulation in behavioral health. Materials are available on-demand 24/7.
References
[1] Bohnert, A. S. B., & Ilgen, M. A. (2019). Understanding links among opioid use, overdose, and suicide. The New England Journal of Medicine, 380(1), 71–79; Luo, C., Chen, K., Doshi, R., Rickles, N., Chen, Y., Schwartz, H., & Aseltine, R. H. (2022). The association of prescription opioid use with suicide attempts: An analysis of statewide medical claims data. PloS one, 17(6), e0269809; Na, P. J., Bommersbach, T. J., Petrakis, I. L., & Rhee, T. G. (2022). National trends of suicidal ideation and mental health services use among US adults with opioid use disorder, 2009-2020. EClinicalMedicine, 54, 101696.
Updated June 2024