TeachME Professional Development

1. Each of the following is an accurate statement about how suicide impacts young people EXCEPT:

2. Maintaining a safe school environment must be part of a school's overall mission, and should include improving school climate and promoting connectedness as a way to help reduce risk of suicide, violence, bullying, and substance abuse.

3. School connectedness is the belief by students that adults and peers in the school care about their learning as well as about them as individuals, and includes creating ____________________ that facilitate student, family, and community engagement; academic achievement; and staff empowerment.

4. The two essential components that every school should have in place for suicide prevention and intervention are protocols for helping students at possible risk of suicide and protocols to educate staff and parents about suicide risk and health promotion.

5. While risk factors for suicide refer to personal or environmental characteristics that are associated with suicide, protective factors are personal or environmental characteristics that can buffer the effects of risk factors and reduce the probability of suicide.

6. Recent research identifies behavioral health issues and disorders that are associated with suicide, including depressive disorders, substance abuse or dependence, conduct and disruptive behavior disorders and:

7. Actions by school staff to enhance protective factors are an essential element of a suicide prevention effort, and strengthening these factors also protects students from other risks, including violence, substance abuse, and academic failure.

8. Experts recommend contacting a mental health professional when witnessing each of the following warning signs for suicide EXCEPT:

9. The most recent available data on youth suicide suggests that among 13-24 year olds, American Indian/Alaska Natives have the highest suicide death rates, followed closely by Asian/Pacific Islanders and African Americans.

10. Experts report that the leading methods by which young people ages 13-19 take their own lives are suffocation (including hanging) and intentional drug overdose.

11. The use of alcohol and other drugs by adolescents can be an attempt to self-medicate, that is, to ease the pain and suffering associated with depression, family dysfunction, and other problems, many of which are also associated with suicide risk.

12. Substance abuse and suicidality can be addressed with common strategies including identifying students suffering from suicidality, substance abuse, or depression and ensuring that they receive help, as well as enhancing overarching protective factors, such as school connectedness.

13. Many children who are bullied have personal characteristics that increase their risk of victimization, including internalizing problems, low self-esteem, low assertiveness, and:

14. The effects of bullying on suicidal behavior and mental health are long term and may persist into adulthood, so efforts must be made to identify and provide appropriate services to students with personal characteristics that increase their risk of being bullied, bullying others, or suicidal behavior.

15. According to the authors, culture profoundly influences how people think about suicide, death, and mental illness, how they display emotions or distress, and:

16. Staff education and training for suicide prevention should include training all professional and support staff to recognize and respond appropriately to students and to assess, refer, and follow up with students who may be at risk of suicide.

17. When developing protocols to help students at risk of suicide, the first step needs to be identifying mental health service providers to whom students can be referred when experiencing suicidal tendencies.

18. School personnel must always immediately notify parents or guardians when there appears to be any risk that a student may harm himself or herself, even if they fear that doing so will exacerbate the situation.

19. Schools should be prepared to facilitate the reentry of students who have missed school because of a suicide attempt or related behavioral health issue, and need to understand that returning to school can be difficult for these young people because:

20. The relationship between self-injury and suicide is complicated, and researchers believe that self-injury is the result of a very complex interaction among social, developmental, intellectual, and emotional factors, and that it is often linked directly to suicidal behavior.

21. The first adult to reach a student who has attempted suicide should stay with the student or designate one or more other adults to stay with him or her, call 9-1-1 or the local emergency service provider, and contact the Student Risk Response Coordinator.

22. The process by which the suicide or suicidal behavior of one or more persons influences others to commit or attempt suicide is known as:

23. Before preparing to create a protocol for responding to a suicide, school personnel should first investigate what is already in place, such as determining if there are there any state, district, Bureau of Indian Education, or tribal protocols or procedures to which the school must conform, and whether or not the school already has a crisis response plan.

24. Those that are responsible for implementing suicide response protocols need to be aware that some staff members may have had experiences that may make it emotionally difficult for them to undertake particular responsibilities.

25. After a suicide, each of the following is recommended to support staff and students EXCEPT:

26. When working with the family of a student who died by suicide, school personnel should provide the parents with information about grief counseling, but should not inquire about funeral arrangements, as that is an extremely sensitive topic that should only be initiated by the family.

27. Experts suggest that announcements about suicide should always be made in classrooms so that staff are able to assess students' reactions, respond to students' concerns, provide support, and:

28. Although talking about the suicide method that was used can create images that are upsetting, it is generally recommended that school personnel be honest and forthcoming, as this will likely encourage students to more openly express their fears and concerns.

29. The staff person responsible for working with the media should prepare a written statement for release to those media representatives who request it, which includes a very brief statement acknowledging the death of the student, an expression of the school's sympathy to the survivors of the deceased, and:

30. When preparing for the long-term aftermath of a suicide, school officials should have a plan to acknowledge the anniversary of the death and be ready to provide support to siblings of the deceased who may be enrolling in the high school.