Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment

Connecting Youth Networks of Care-Colorado (CYNC-CO) will reduce the burden of suicide among Colorado youth ages 10-24 by implementing comprehensive suicide prevention and early intervention strategies in eight Colorado counties with high youth suicide death and/or attempt rates. CYNC-CO will serve 41,668 youth and youth-serving adults over the five year project, emphasizing targeting at -risk youth, including LGBTQ and Hispanic youth, youth engaged in the juvenile justice and child welfare systems, youth in college, and youth from military families or serving in the military. The project will include increasing coordination among youth-serving institutions including schools, mental health and substance abuse treatment provider systems, juvenile justice/child welfare systems, emergency department/hospital systems, and other youth-serving organizations. The Office of Suicide Prevention (OSP) will coordinate all activities.

CYNC-CO will align with the Colorado Mental Health Crisis Services System, community mental health centers, schools, emergency departments, and other youth-serving organizations in the eight project counties. Programs and interventions of focus will include Sources of Strength, QPR gatekeeper training, Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality, Emergency Department Counseling on Access to Lethal Means, an emergency department follow-up program, and the Zero Suicide framework.

CYNC-CO will accomplish the following goals during the five-year project:

• Goal One: Eight Colorado counties with the highest suicide burden will have sustainable suicide intervention and prevention networks targeting youth ages 10-24.
• Goal Two: Increase the number of youth who are identified, assessed for risk and referred for mental health or related intervention.
• Goal Three: Increase the number and percentage of youth receiving mental health or related services after referral.
• Goal Four: Increase the number and percentage of youth receiving follow-up support and services after emergency care.
• Goal Five: Promote system level change through the adoption and implementation of the Zero Suicide framework.
• Goal Six: Promote system level change within schools, emergency departments, mental health and substance abuse treatment services, crisis response services, and youth serving organizations at the community level.
• Goal Seven: Maintain state and community infrastructure to implement applicable sections of the 2012 National Strategy for Suicide Prevention.

The OSP will conduct process, outcome, and performance evaluations throughout the cooperative agreement, and will contract with the University of Colorado, School of Public Health to design and implement outcome evaluation tools for the life of the project