Morehead State University

Morehead State University seeks to create a Suicide Prevention Program that will systematically create a campus environment that is safer for all students, staff, and faculty, to intervene and assist those at risk for suicide, and to create an enhanced infrastructure to promote a cultural change regarding the perception of mental health. This will be accomplished using a public health model, expanding programs and services, and targeting 25% of all MSU students. QPR training will be provided to help everyone recognize and respond to those identified as at risk for suicide. Suicide is currently the second leading cause of death among college age students in the U.S, with 521 deaths by suicide in Kentucky alone during 2010 (CDC Report, 2010). The success of this model on college campuses rests on the ability to detect students at risk for suicide, effectively referring them for a professional evaluation, and providing access to meaningful and appropriate mental health treatment. The goals and objectives for the MSU Suicide Prevention Program are as follows: to develop momentum among campus administrators and leadership through presentations and discussion on the importance of suicide prevention activities to the MSU campus; to educate the community of students and stakeholders in suicide prevention indicators by providing QPR Gatekeeper training with targeted groups of students, staff, faculty, and community stakeholders; to provide information to parents of MSU students during student orientation on identification of depression and other mental health issues, specifically warning signs of suicide, and the intervention process; to develop and build infrastructure for MSU Suicide Prevention Plan, including a written protocol for the behavioral intervention team; to establish campus advisory groups and main campus and 4 regional campuses; to build community networks and establish partnerships between MSU and community mental and physical health providers; to develop a protocol for postvention and establish policies and procedures to serve as a guide for managing situations when there has been a suicide attempt. The MSU Program will follow the model outlined by Jed Foundation Campus MHAP. It is evidenced-based and data driven and has been established as the best practices method for a comprehensive community-based approach to promote mental health among college and university students. Evaluation and data collection will aid in determining if grant activities are producing the desired outcomes of reducing incidence of suicidal behavior on our campus. Ethical and responsible oversight of this grant will be performed to ensure that we are meeting the needs of our youth at high-risk, culturally compliant, adhering to CLAS standards and using the grant resources appropriately.