School Personnel Perspectives on their School’s Implementation of a School-Based Suicide Prevention Program

• Published in: The journal of behavioral health services & research Vol. 37; no. 3; pp. 338 - 349
• Main Authors: Stein, Bradley D., Kataoka, Sheryl H., Hamilton, Alison B., Schultz, Dana, Ryan, Gery, Vona, Pamela, Wong, Marleen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston Springer US 01.07.2010; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Administrative support; Adolescent; At risk; At risk students; Community and Environmental Psychology; Health Education - organization & administration; Health Informatics; Health Promotion and Disease Prevention; Health Psychology; Humans; Informants; Interviews as Topic; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Personnel; Prevention programs; Preventive programmes; Program Evaluation; Psychiatry; Public Health; School based; School Health Services - organization & administration; Schools; Schools - organization & administration; Studies; Suicide; Suicide Prevention; Suicides & suicide attempts; Suicide Prevention; Crisis Intervention Team; Crisis Intervention; Youth Suicide; School Personnel
• ISSN: 1094-3412; 1556-3308
• DOI: 10.1007/s11414-009-9174-2

Youth suicide is a national public health priority, with policymakers highlighting schools as an ideal setting in which to deliver suicide prevention programs. Over the past decade, the number of schools implementing such programs has grown substantially, yet little is known about how successfully such programs are being implemented. This study examines the implementation of a district-wide suicide prevention program through key informant interviews with school personnel. Schools with higher rates of implementing district protocols for at-risk students had an organized system to respond to at-risk students, a process for effectively responding to students who were at-risk for suicide, and strong administrative support. In contrast, schools that had lower rates of implementing district protocols relied on a handful of individuals for suicide prevention activities and had limited administrative support. Attention to organizational factors leading to successful implementation of school-based suicide prevention programs may enhance the role of schools in national adolescent suicide prevention efforts.