There is one thing that strikes fear in my little school counselor heart. No matter how many classes I take, how prepared I think that I am mentally or emotionally, or how many times I present about it in professional development to staff members, I always get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach when I get the call that it may be a possibility. What is this thing? Well, it is a suicidal student!
Over my career, I have had a lot of experience working with students and their families when there is a suicidal threat. Typically, a staff member, usually the English department, will notify me that they have read a journal entry by a student. The student indicated in their writing that they are contemplating suicide or have had suicidal ideations. Following the initial notification, I would call my school social worker about the student, and then we would mobilize! The first thing we would do was to pull out the Columbia-Suicide Severity Scale and our team of two would determine the student's severity of suicidal ideation. After determining the severity, we would call the parent to request that the student be taken for an evaluation. In a perfect world, all our parents were willing to get off work, take their student for an evaluation, and then follow the directives from the evaluation. Cue in the hysterical laugh...it didn't always go as planned.
Although school counselors are often expected to be the experts in suicide awareness and prevention, many of my colleagues, including myself, are often petrified when we hear the word. In my humble opinion, I believe that our fear comes from our lack of training, ignorance about protocols, and unfamiliarity with helpful resources.
The School Counselor and Suicide
You can interview school counselors at different levels and different types of schools, and you will get a variety of responses about how they believe they should respond to a suicidal student. A lot of their beliefs originate from their comfort level, training, or the position of their district. To really know the role of the school counselor, we need to go to our mother organization for direction. In 2022, the American School Counselor Association created a position statement regarding the school counselor's role in suicide prevention and awareness.
"School counselors work to identify behavioral and social/emotional signs of suicide risk among their students and ensure prevention methods are in place. It is the school counselor’s ethical and moral responsibility to report suspected suicide risk to legal guardians and the appropriate authorities. In acknowledging suspected suicide risk, school counselors exercise reasonable care to protect students from unforeseeable harm" (ASCA, 2022).
The Role of the School Counselor
Going back to ASCA, school counselors are given guidelines regarding their role when working with potentially suicidal students. ASCA has given us distinct instructions of what we should do when a staff member, parent, or student reports that someone has made a direct or indirect threat.
Here are ASCA's recommendations for school counselors:
1. Check on the student immediately! A student should be assessed as soon as possible using the suicide assessment approved by your district. As a school counselor, it is imperative that you educate your staff about your district's policy for reporting that a student may be a threat to self. In addition to educating your staff about reporting, it is imperative that the staff know how to report a potential suicidal student to the counselor and/or administrative. For example, a staff member should not wait until the end of the day to report a student or send a report in an email.
2. Once the threat is reported, it is the job of the school counselor to call the parent. Even if you think the student is not a threat to self, a parent should be notified about their child's threat and the district's policy for regarding student safety.
3. Once the parents or guardians are notified, the school counselor is responsible for giving the family referral resources. If the parent takes no action (which does happen), the school counselor is responsible for making a referral to protective service.
4. The school counselor is tasked with making all school staff, students, and parents about suicide during the year.
Suicide Awareness
Although it can be extremely time consuming, school counselors should be the leading the initiative in suicide prevention and awareness. As we know, there is a lot of stigma regarding suicide in our schools and communities. Educating the adults and students in our building has been shown to save lives (Edutopia). If you have not been involved in suicide prevention or you are a new school counselor, the month of September is a great time to start your prevention program.
Again, September is Suicide Awareness Month and a great time to bring awareness to this topic that receives so much stigma. Each year, there are several toolkits that are available to schools and organizations that school counselors can download to help educate others about preventing, intervening, and supporting students who may be suicidal.
Toolkits
The National Institute on Mental Health has issued a toolkit of shareable resources. For instance, here is one of their shareable resources that may be sent out on social media or made into posters.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have created a kit to raise awareness about the severe public health threat that suicide poses on the public. The kit helps to promote the importance of connection as a tool for prevention. Here is a poster to share in your school.
Suicide Prevention Campaign Toolkit identifies strategies for addressing suicide among youth. School counselors can download infographics and statistics from this website.
Whether you are just getting started or wanting to up your game, these toolkits are a great way to get information for your awareness campaigns. Also, check out these additional resources below.
I hope you have a successful Suicide Awareness Month!!
Resources
Ask for Help Cards
100 Ways to Make It Through the Next Five Minutes
Bullying and Suicide
Center for Suicide Prevention - Tattered Teddies Handbook
Depression and Suicide
Gay and Suicidal
Guidance of Students Returning to School After a Suicide Related Absence
JED Foundation
Lifeline Suicide Prevention E-Cards
Lifeline Trilogy
Memorials After a Suicide
Mental Health First Aid
More Than Sad
My3app - Suicide Prevention App
National Suicide Prevention Week Ideas
Not My Kid - Video for parents
Prevent the Attempt - What to say if your organization has an online presence.
Preventing Suicide A Toolkit for High Schools
Question, Persuade, Refer - Gatekeeper training.
School Suicide Prevention Accreditation
Signs of Suicide - Secondary Suicide Prevention Program.
Sources of Strength - School program to prevent suicide.
Substance Use and Suicide Prevention
Suicide Awareness Poster
Suicide Isn't About Wanting to Die
Suicide Help Card
Suicide Prevention Among LGBT Youth
Suicide Prevention Resource Center
Suicide Prevention Guide for Teachers
Suicide Prevention Primer
Suicide Shouldn't Be a Secret
2013 State Suicide Stats
Suicidal Warning Signs
Talking About Suicide With LGBTQ Populations
Teens Reaction to the Anniversary Date of a Peers Death
Teen Suicide - Facts and Information for Canadian Educators
Trevor Project - Resources for LGBTQ teens.
World Suicide Awareness Day
Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention
Youth Suicide Webinars
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