Tule River Indian Health Center

The Tule River Indian Health Center, Inc. (TRIHC) will implement the Tribal Youth Suicide Prevention (TYSP) Project. The TYSP Project will provide much-needed suicide prevention, assessment, and early intervention services for Native American youth (ages 10 – 24), who reside on the Tule River Indian Reservation in Tulare County (California), as well as other Native American youth (ages 10 – 24) from throughout Tulare County. The target population reports high levels of depression related feelings — 23.7%% in past month — and high levels of suicidal ideation — 17.1% in past month. The project will use three (3) evidence-based practices, including: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT); Interpersonal Psycho-therapy (IPT); and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). The project will also use culturally appropriate activities, including: sweat and healing lodges; smudging; teaching traditional ways; singing, dancing, and drumming; storytelling; traditional crafts; and traditional games. The goals of the project are to increase the number of educators, health care providers, emergency services personnel, and government agency personnel working with tribal youth in Tulare County who are aware of, and can identify the risk factors associated with, Native American youth suicides and provide early interventions and/or referrals as needed, as well as to increase the number of Native American who are provided with evidence-based suicide prevention, assessment, and early intervention services. At the conclusion of the five-year project period, at least 35% of educational and medical associations active in Tulare County will have incorporated suicide prevention screenings and training into their regular personnel training and patient assessments. Further, at the conclusion of the five-year project period, at least 250 youth will have completed treatment with at least 75% reporting positive long-term effects of the treatment and at least 75% of at-risk youth referred to the TYSP Project following an inpatient stay due to mental health issues will report their experience through the project as productive with a decrease in feelings of depression and ideas of self-harm.