Manual – Suicide Prevention Resource Center

Supporting Survivors of Suicide Loss: A Guide for Funeral Directors (2nd ed.)

This guide provides critical information and practical advice to help funeral directors better serve people who are bereaved by a suicide loss. It also suggests useful resources for suicide loss survivors. The second edition is a collaboration of Education Development Center (EDC) and Samaritans, Inc., with input from funeral directors, psychologists, and suicide loss survivors.

Highlights of the second edition include:

Updated information on topics such as common experiences of suicide loss survivors and services that funeral directors should consider providing to them
Updated and expanded resource list
A new table containing preferred ways to communicate with suicide loss survivors
A new section on the role of funeral directors as community leaders

National Suicide Prevention Strategies: Progress, Examples and Indicators

This guide outlines strategies for developing, implementing and evaluating national suicide prevention strategies and provides examples from each WHO region. It is intended to inspire governments and policymakers to establish their own national suicide prevention strategies that include multiple stakeholders and are adapted to engage local communities.

Screening and assessment of co-occurring disorders in the justice system

This guide examines practices for screening and assessment of people in the justice system who have co-occurring mental and substance use disorders (CODs) and reviews selected instruments, some in the public domain, for screening, assessment and diagnosis of CODs in that setting. Sections include Evaluating Suicide Risk and Screening and Assessment Instruments for Suicide Risk. It is intended for clinicians, case managers, program and systems administrators, community supervision staff, jail and prison booking and healthcare staff, law enforcement, court personnel, researchers, and others interested in developing and operating effective programs for justice-involved individuals who have CODs.

Leveraging Funding Sources and Partnerships in Child and Adolescent Injury Prevention

This guide provides a compilation of public and private funding sources and strategic guidance on collaborating through traditional and non-traditional partnerships in order to achieve greater impact in reducing child and adolescent injury and violence. Although this work is broader in scope, both funding sources and guidance on building partnerships are applicable to suicide prevention.

A practical guide to psychiatric advance directives

This guide provides background and practical information promoting the use of psychiatric advance directives as a tool for self-directed care in psychiatric treatment and supporting crisis planning. It provides a plan according to the direction of an individual with mental illness should s/he become incapacitated, as in a suicidal crisis.

Suicide prevention competencies for faith leaders: Supporting life before, during, and after a suicidal crisis

Faith leaders serving in both congregational and unique ministry settings, such as hospital, civil, and military chaplaincy, may lack sufficient training in counseling and suicide intervention to provide safe, effective support. These competencies, developed in partnership with faith community leaders and suicide prevention experts, equip faith leaders with the capabilities needed to prevent suicide and provide care and comfort to all those affected by suicide.

Behavioral health services for American Indians and Alaska Natives for behavioral health service providers, administrators and supervisors

Historically, American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) have experienced disparities in access to healthcare services, funding, resources, quality and quantity of services, treatment outcomes, and health education and prevention services, presenting major barriers to their recovery. This Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) assists behavioral health providers in providing culturally competent and responsive, engaging, holistic, trauma-informed services to AI/AN clients. The TIP provides program administrators and supervisors with tools and strategies that will help facilitate implementation of these practices.

College counseling from a distance: Deciding whether and when to engage in telemental health services

The purpose of this guide is to: 1. Outline the potential benefits, limitations, and concerns regarding telemental health (TMH) services in the field of college student mental health. 2. Aid mental health professionals who serve college students and Institutions of Higher Education (IHE) administrators in engaging in dialogue about these benefits, limitations, and concerns in order to make informed decisions about whether to engage in providing TMH services. 3. Outline several areas to consider in order to ethically practice at a distance when the decision to provide TMH services is made. 4. Connect readers to resources on the topic of TMH.

Note that the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number given is incorrect. It should be 1-800-273-8255

Student fees: A campaign guide for students

This campaign guide is for students wanting to raise or modify student fees on campus for funding mental health education and services. The guide provides strategies such as finding allies, getting to know decision-makers and presenting the case to college/university administrators.

Crisis supports for the autism community

This short guide assists crisis workers in identifying and supporting autistic callers/texters who are in crisis, even in cases where a person with autism may not disclose (or be aware of) their diagnosis. It explains the unique differences in communication, thought processes, sensory issues and misunderstandings a crisis worker may encounter while assisting a person on the autism spectrum in crisis.