QPR

QPR stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer - the 3 simple steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, and refer someone to help. Each year thousands of Americans, like you, are saying "Yes" to saving the life of a friend, colleague, sibling, or neighbor. 

This is a community based presentation that covers the general scope of suicide, the research on prevention, and what people can do to fight suicide. 

Attendees will learn the risk and warning signs of suicide, and how together, we can help prevent it. 

This training may take place as an 8 hour session or as two 4 hour sessions. These sessions are focused on either the youth population or the adult population. This course gives people the skills to help someone who is developing a mental health problem or experiencing mental health crisis. The evidence behind the program demonstrates that it does build mental health literacy, helping the public identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illness. 

Topics Covered:

• Depression and Mood Disorders
• Anxiety Disorders
• Trauma
• Psychosis
• Substance Use Disorders

 Mental health challenges – such as depression, anxiety, psychosis and substance use – are shockingly common in the United States. In fact, more than one in five American adults will have a mental health problem in any given year. The National Council for Behavioral Health certifies individuals throughout the nation, including Plymouth County Suicide Prevention Coalition to provide Mental Health First Aid courses. 

Mental Health First Aid teachers about recovery and resiliency - the belief that individuals experiencing these challenges can and do get better, and use their strengths to stay well. 

safeTALK is a half-day alertness training that prepares anyone over the age of 15, regardless of prior experience or training, to become a suicide-alert helper. Most people with thoughts of suicide don't truly want to die, but are struggling with the pain in their lives. Through their words and actions, they invite help to stay alive. safeTALK - trained helpers can recognize these invitations and take action by connecting them with life-saving intervention resources, such as caregivers trained in ASIST. 

Since its development in 2006, safeTALK has been used in over 20 countries around the world, and more than 200 selectable vignettes have been produced to tailor the program's audio-visual component for diverse audiences. safeTALK - trained helpers are an important part of suicide-safer communities, working alongside intervention resources to identify and avert suicide risks. 

Learning Goals and Objectives:

Over the course of their training, safeTALK participants will learn to:

• Notice and respond to situations where suicide thoughts might be present
• Recognize that invitations for help are often overlooked 
• Move beyond the common tendency to miss, dismiss, and avoid suicide
• Apply the TALK steps: Tell, Ask, Listen and KeepSafe
• Know community resources and how to connect someone with thoughts of suicide to them for further help

Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) is a two-day interactive workshop in suicide first aid. ASIST teaches participants to recognize when someone may have thoughts of suicide and work with them to create a plan that will support their immediate safety. Although ASIST is widely used by healthcare providers, participants don't need any formal training to attend the workshop - anyone 16 or older can learn and use the ASIST model.