Welcome to the Oregon ASIST website! The Association of Oregon Community Mental Health Programs (AOCMHP), with funding support from the Oregon Health Authority/Health Systems Division, administers ASIST as a statewide project to significantly increase the number of Oregonians who are prepared to prevent suicide. This project is focused on growing local capacity of evidence-based suicide prevention training – ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training).  The goal is to ensure training is available for those who have regular contact with youth ages 10-24 years old who may have thoughts of suicide.  Go to the ABOUT section for more information about this project.

 

 

UPDATE – As of November 2020, this project has shifted its focus in response to the COVID-19 pandemic which limits both of these in-person only trainings. To fill the suicide intervention space, Oregon Health Authority, through a partnership with Oregon Pediatric Society, brought forth a virtual training option – Youth SAVE (Suicide Assessment in Virtual Environments).  This exciting development does mean that focus on safeTALK has decreased.  While safeTALK is still an important training, it is unknown when or if safeTALK will come back into focus.  Contact Tim for more information.

 

The ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) workshop is a gold-standard two-day suicide intervention training focused on helping individuals as young as 16 years old to prevent suicide. The interactive workshop teaches individuals the skills needed to recognize youths who may be at risk of suicide, including identifying warning signs of suicide, providing a skilled intervention, and developing a safety plan.  To learn more about the training, who should be trained, how to get trained, or opportunities to become a trainer, go to the ABOUT section.

 

This project is a part of a larger effort by the Oregon Health Authority to expand suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention training capacity. This includes trainings such as Sources of Strength, Mental Health First Aid, QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer), Youth SAVE (Suicide Assessment in Virtual Environments), and Connect Postvention.  To learn more about this project and other trainings related, check out this flyer showing the different programs along the prevention spectrum.

 

In addition to the aforementioned trainings, Oregon Health Authority also funds the Oregon Alliance to Prevent Suicide which oversees the implementation of the five-year Youth Suicide Intervention and Prevention Plan (YSIPP).  To learn more about the Alliance or get involved, check out their website.

 

To learn more about broader suicide prevention work in Oregon, find support, and browse resources, check out the Oregon Suicide Prevention website.  If you would like to learn more about the developer of ASIST and safeTALK and the other trainings they provide, you can learn more by visiting LivingWorks’ website.

If you or someone you know needs help, please reach out:

  • Oregon YouthLine: 877.968.8491
  • 24/7 Crisis Text Line: Text ‘SOS’ to 741741