About this Project
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 an 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.
This project has several major goals:
- Connect and support current Oregon ASIST trainers
- Expand local suicide prevention training infrastructure
- Increase number of Oregonians trained in ASIST, especially those who are in a position to identify and support youth with thoughts of suicide
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 (tglascock@aocmhp.org).
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.
About the Training
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.
Who should be trained:
- School Counselors
- Mental Health Professionals
- Site managers or anyone responsible for suicide screening
Not sure, contact Tim!
Training learning objectives:
- Recognize that caregivers and persons at risk are affected by personal and societal attitudes about suicide
- Discuss suicide with a person at risk in a direct manner
- Identify risk alerts and develop a safe plan related to them
- Demonstrate the skills required to intervene with a person at risk of suicide
- List the types of resources available to a person at risk of suicide, including themselves
- Make a commitment to improving community resources and networking
- Recognize that suicide prevention is broader than suicide intervention and includes life promotion and self-care for persons at risk and for caregivers
For more information, visit https://www.livingworks.net/asist
About US
Tim Glascock, MPH, is the Statewide ASIST/Youth SAVE Coordinator who leads this project at AOCMHP (Association of Oregon Community Mental Health Programs). With a decade of professional experience, Tim is purposefully focused and passionate about improving individual and community mental health outcomes, especially for historically excluded, rural, and low-income Oregonians. Tim received a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Psychology and a Master of Public Health (MPH), both from Oregon State University. Between his BS and MPH, he worked in rural mental health and education settings to support youth with behavioral challenges while educating school staff, parents, and community organizations on strategies to support such students in classrooms, community, and home settings. During and after the MPH program, Tim shifted his focus to suicide prevention and mental health promotion. This includes researching, designing, and implementing suicide prevention training, wellness programming, marketing and communication campaigns, and coordinating related committees. Tim lives in Monmouth with his wife and dog who spend as much time as possible in nature, gardening and spending quality time with family and friends.
You can connect with Tim via email for more information.
AOCMHP is committed to coordinating statewide access to effective suicide prevention trainings to ensure they are widely available in Oregon. By equipping youth-serving adults, families, friends, and community members with the knowledge of how to recognize the warning signs of suicide, increasing their confidence to intervene early, and increasing their competence during an intervention, we hope to reduce youth suicide. We are enthusiastic about spreading safeTALK and ASIST trainings as two more tools in our toolbox of evidence-based suicide prevention training programs available to Oregonians who interact with young people, youth and young adults.