September is National Suicide Prevention Month, “a time to raise awareness of this urgently important crisis,” per the National Alliance on Mental Illness. However, while raising awareness is crucial, it’s not enough on its own. In Kentucky, where suicide ranks as the second leading cause of death among people aged 10 to 34, awareness must be coupled with action.
This isn’t just a public health issue — it’s a community responsibility.
Kentuckians must engage in proactive efforts to prevent suicide, support those at risk, challenge the stigma surrounding mental health, and, thus, acknowledge that this issue requires our collective attention.According to the National Institute of Health, in recent years the number of suicides in the US has been double that of homicides. Over the past seven years, we have lost 5,321 Kentuckians to suicide: more than 800 a year.
Moreover, our research indicates that each suicide impacts approximately 135 people. Mathematically, it’s easy to work that somber equation: it means that, in the past seven years alone, 700,000 people in Kentucky communities were impacted by suicide. And, over the same timeframe, Kentucky emergency rooms saw nearly 25,000 visits for intentional self-harm.
People are struggling and in need of help from those who love them.
It’s time to get to work.
Together, we must endeavor to meet this issue head-on and reverse the trajectory of these trends. That begins with breaking the stigma and understanding how we all can prevent suicide.
Actions we can take today
The first step is to ask ourselves a question: If your friend mentioned suicide — if your teen was struggling with depression — if your partner appeared hopeless — would you know what to do?
Most people will likely answer no, and no one should be ashamed of that. But, it should catalyze action. After all, we regularly embrace training for responses to physical ailments, such as the Heimlich maneuver and CPR. Fortunately, training for responses to mental ailments is now more accessible than ever before through a program called QPR that is now free and available online to all Kentuckians.
QPR — which stands for Question, Persuade and Refer — is a simple, yet powerful method that anyone can learn to help save lives from suicide. UK HealthCare’s Healthy Kentucky Initiative, recognizing the urgent need for accessible mental health resources, now offers this training online, for free, 24/7, to anyone across Kentucky.
Any Kentuckian can take this training at ukhealthcare.com/qpr.
QPR training is rooted in the idea that anyone, not just medical professionals, can intervene in a mental health crisis. The training teaches individuals how to recognize the warning signs of suicide, how to talk to someone who may be at risk and how to guide someone to appropriate resources. Much like CPR, QPR
teaches us how to proactively identify warning signs, intervene quickly in a crisis and get help. It’s a less-than-one-hour commitment that could potentially save a life.
It is important to understand: Despite the stigma, there is no evidence that talking about suicide will put an idea into someone’s head that is not already there due to their pain, lack of belonging or loneliness. In other words, talking about suicide does not cause suicidal thoughts. In fact, not talking about suicide can increase isolation and the perception that others don’t care.
It is just as crucial to recognize the key elements in lowering suicide risk are hope and connection. Each of us already possesses the ability to offer these to others. Online QPR training provides additional guidance regarding how to broach the subject and discuss this topic with someone who needs to feel hope and connection.
Finally, it’s vital for us to communicate that treatments are available to help people who are suicidal find a life worth living. Even a brief pause and conversation with someone can change a path toward suicide and encourage a person to seek help. QPR can help prepare Kentuckians for those conversations.
This September, let’s remember that preventing suicide is a community responsibility. Start by educating yourself and others about the realities of suicide. You can do this by taking the QPR training and breaking the silence associated with this topic. You can initiate conversations about mental health in your own circles.
You also can share resources that exist to assist those in crisis. Available 24/7/365 and free-of-charge, 988 is an easy three-digit phone number that will connect callers with a person — a trained, compassionate counselor who can provide immediate help. Counselors belong to a Kentucky network of call-centers linked to other emergency response services. This allows callers to be quickly connected to the right kind of help.
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Remember that each of us may, at some juncture, represent exactly the right kind of help for someone who is struggling.
So, as we observe National Suicide Prevention Month, let’s remember that raising awareness is just the beginning. In Kentucky, where the impact of suicide is felt so deeply, we cannot afford to stop at awareness alone. This crisis demands action — action that each of us across Kentucky should take by equipping ourselves with the tools to intervene.
The time to act is now; it starts with each of us committing to make a difference.
Dr. Sarah Geegan is a faculty member at the UK College of Communication and Information.
Dr. Lindsay Jasinski is the Chief Administrative Officer at UK Eastern State Hospital.
Dr. Julie Cerel is a faculty member at the University of Kentucky's College of Social Work, where she specializes in suicide prevention, suicide exposure, suicide attempt survivors and their lived experiences and bereavement.
